Reverse Kingdom
by Mareonet
Summary: -TWTNS previews- A collection of NON-LINEAR previews in the form of oneshots for my new Kingdom Hearts retelling. Contains FFVII, FFVIII, FFX, and FFXIII elements, and a FFXV cameo! Contains new, unusual and mature elements and cameos from several other Disney & SE properties and/or partners. Demo 11: The Star Shard from Radiance leads Kairi's party to a magical world. -ON HIATUS-
1. My Fears, My Lies

**A/N:** Welcome, welcome. **No** , I am **not** abandoning AD'sC or _Cache_! I just feel safe enough in my upload position, if you will, right now to finally, FINALLY upload (two) new fanfics. I have four main fanfiction I am working on: a DMC one, a KH one, a NnT one and a Bleach one.

Please **note**! I have seven chapters in total complete for this fanfic! I will upload more for this (and my NnT fic) only if genuine interest is given to it! It's a process, you see. I need to give myself time between uploading chapters of my fics. I think I can wait, if need be...

Like with _A Devil's Cacophony_ , this fanfic is a result of me simply trying to get these general ideas out of my head. Similarly, the chapters don't have a specific timeline, though some might take place after or before another. These chapters are all **non-linear** , in other words, and are **previews** of an entire KH project I am working on that you can call TWTNS.

Themes in the series are of locks, keys, keyrings, dreams, and destiny.

There will be conversation/explanations in what will be called _LOADING_... chapters. More info in the first _LOADING_... chapter.

Only the original elements and characters belong to me.

 **Demo 1**  
 **My Fears, My Lies**

* * *

With a start, Riku's eyes snapped open, turquoise meeting the darker, true blue of a cloudless sky. A soft gasp slipped past his lips, though he didn't know why. The familiar feel of the sand below his body registered to him, as well as the soft ocean breeze, the smells of the beachside. It would have been easy to lose himself in the familiar comfort, if not for the last image that made its way to the forefront of his mind.

All at once, he popped upright, head turning to his right to meet the scene from his memory. Sora was lying upon the sand as he had been, but was unconscious. This alarmed him, not just because his best friend was attacked by that black figure, but because another if not the same black figure sat not too far away upon the ledge, looking at them.

"There is no waking Sora," the figure said to him, the masculine voice carrying well despite its slight monotone.

"...What...did you do to him?" he demanded, moving onto his feet, though he was unsteady. There was a throbbing in his head, and he had to take his time to stand.

The figure's head slightly turned away, a soft, irritated sound strangely akin to a snarl emitting from them. "I did _nothing_. I got here not too long ago. You were both out when I arrived," the person continued. There was...something about their voice that rubbed Riku the wrong way...

He softly exhaled, closing his eyes from the pain budding in his head. Placing a hand on his forehead, he lowered back to the sand.

Watching him, the figure moved off the ledge and began to approach. "...Yeah. It hit me pretty hard...getting those memories back..."

"What...memor..." Trailing off, Riku went quiet as his mind brought said memories to the front of his mind. He went still, eyes wide in shock, as all of what happened during a time so foreign and yet so familiar replayed in his mind's eye.

Keyblades...

...Kingdom Hearts...

The Organization...

Kairi.

Darkness...

...Maleficent...

He closed his eyes again.

The unknown person was closer, now, and looking over Sora. The brunet was supine, arms at his sides, in a most unnatural way. "...Got everything back, then, Riku?" they asked.

"Who...who are you...?" There would be a time to try to figure out what it all meant, but Riku felt that it was not that time. Yet. He looked up, an eye open to stare at the person.

Their hood, though not the same as the figure that had attacked Sora, allowed him to see just a bit of the lower part of their face. Pale, veiny skin was visible, as well as almost silvery-purple lips. "...Someone from the Darkness," they murmured, moving away from Sora, and away from Riku as well. "...Someone who...does not know if they should be...or should not."

"Show yourself," Riku said, finally managing to stand onto his feet. The initial hostility he felt towards the unknown figure had strangely subsided, as if he knew who the person was. It was as they were a magnet and he was trying to connect to them. "...I...know you...don't I?"

"So you sense it, as well. Though...I doubt you remember that far back..." The figure shook their head, and then motioned to Sora with a wave. "He is unconscious, from what I can tell, but I would not take my word for it. Whomever hit him did it with something I have never come into contact with, which is...hard to believe, considering all the places I have visited...all the things I have seen..." they conversed.

The distraction worked, and Riku looked back at his friend. The last memory he had was of Sora being attacked by a...taller, and somehow more menacing figure, now that he recalled it. The details of how, however, were blurry. He just remembered being enraged, and...attacking that figure. Then everything went black.

"...You were watching us?" he asked softly.

Another hand wave, this one dismissive. "No. Unless you mean watching _over_ you. Then yes. After I failed to awaken you two, I merely stayed."

"Thank you..." The words left Riku's mouth before he was aware. This brought him back to the figure's identity, but wisely let it go for the moment. He came to Sora's side, lowering beside him, and sighed. "...You were right, Sora. I remember everything, now...even Kairi," he murmured, his tone somber with regret. Why didn't he...remember...sooner...?

He then took the time to think about this for a moment. Why was it that he "remembered" anything at all? The past...year...happened...didn't it? But it conflicted harshly with his memories of his..."current" life, the one he lived blissfully unaware with until just moments ago. As Sora had said, it was as if he remembered two lives, but both were his. Both were as real as the other. The only difference was he was currently living one of them.

...Both figures, however...He looked up at the one observing him as he observed back. They were new to both memories.

"...You said 'getting _those memories_ back'..." he said to them. "Do you mean to say you have memories of two lives, too?"

With crossed arms, the figure looked away again. Perhaps that was something they didn't intend to have said aloud. Taking this moment of silence to his advantage, Riku studied them.

The coat they wore was drastically different from the Black Coats Organization XIII was so known for wearing. Those were uniform, pristine and yet served their purpose to make their wearers enigmatic. This one worn by the figure was...ragged, with a frayed hem and ripped in several places. It was...more like a cloak than a coat, now that he studied it, and seemed comprised of a single large black cloth with a hood that was also frayed at the edges. Their loose, baggy pants were also rather tattered, and they walked barefoot on the sand.

Their most defining feature was that their pale skin was visible. Not just some of their face...but their arms. They were sickly pale, with near-purple veins visible under the surface of their heavily scarred, burned flesh. A pale, black figure...

"Two _lives_...no," they finally answered, a sort of growl in their voice. "More like...recollections of lies and a pathetic sham of an existence in one set of memories...and the other set...a series of unfortunate events that make the pathetic sham of an existence _greatly_ desired in exchange."

Something about the way the person was speaking was irritatingly familiar to Riku...and not in a good way. Yet still, he sensed no need to be hostile or even concerned for his and Sora's well-being in their presence. It was more reactionary thought than instinct telling him to do so.

He frowned. "Which one is the present...existence?" he carefully asked.

For another moment, the figure was still. Letting out a soft, resigned scoff, they then turned back to him. "You tell me," they challenged, reaching up to lower their hood, "...if you can even tell who I was."

The face that stared out between long silver bangs was shockingly familiar...yet...hauntingly unfamiliar. Piercing turquoise eyes with slanted, cat-like pupils stared between the locks, into his very soul, and there was no mistaking it, despite the horrible changes.

"...You're..." he breathed, equal turquoise eyes wide with shock and horror, "that...replica."

Hands out, the sickly twin gave a dark, twisted smirk. "That replica. Indeed, Riku, I am _that replica_ from Castle Oblivion. The one created by Vexen of Organization XIII, the Chilly Academic." Hands dropping dramatically, he leaned forward and asked, "So then. Any thoughts about my changes in this dark, new existence?"

There was little to say, and Riku stared upon the prominent veins that bulged around the unnaturally glowing eyes with morbid fascination. Despite the pale, veiny skin, the cat-like pupils, discolored lips, and shoulder-length, unkempt hair, it _was_ his replica. The last thing he recalled of his replica was him fading away...with the hopes to join with his own being, one day. And he had hoped that for him, too. But...this..."...What... _happened_ to you...?" he asked, shockingly earnest in his inquiry. And it showed, he was sure, in his voice and upon his face.

Eyes narrowing, his twin replied, "You would never guess it. You would not understand. But considering I just recalled it as well..." He looked away yet again, raising his hood to cover his hair, but not his face. "...It is unimportant, Riku. Never you mind. It will...all be revealed in due time—"

These words seemed to be the last tip Riku needed. "It was her...wasn't it?" he interrupted without thinking. "...You even speak like her."

Both twins were deathly silent the moment the words left his mouth. The difference was Riku stood with clenched hands and a locked jaw, whereas his former replica stood with wide eyes, a horrified expression and a mouth still open in the motion of forming words.

Slowly, his mouth closed, causing teeth to clench as the pale twin stared off at nothing. Upon his face, his expression worsened, looking more haunted and terrified as the seconds passed. He then slowly turned his head to look at Riku with that very expression, but this time with unsaid acknowledgement to the spoken words.

Upon seeing that face, cold, shivering dread passed through Riku's body. "...How long?" he almost whispered.

"...Fourteen years," came the monotone response. "...Fourteen...long...years."

Immediately, though for reasons he couldn't put into words, Riku began to approach, but the long swaying hair stopped him.

"I...When I...recalled those other memories...it gave me _just_ _enough_ willpower to leave. I came here...to look for you. So easily, I found you..." His haunted expression worsened, his gaze staring past Riku as his thoughts overcame him. "When she realizes I am no longer there...I do not know...if I have the strength to resist her when she calls me back."

"You can. You _will_ ," Riku encouraged, taking a few steps forward. He only stopped because his twin was moving away.

The pale twin's head lowered, and he briefly closed his eyes. "...Ease your worries for me, right now, Riku. All of that is...inevitable. If I ever get the chance...I shall tell you of my story, now that I remember it." He slowly approached, but hesitantly. "...Instead, we should worry about Sora..." he said, evasive.

Riku understood. Without a doubt, his former replica was traumatized. He so dearly wanted to know the details of exactly why he was in such a condition, but it wasn't his place. "...You can at least tell me your name," he said, moving back towards Sora with hesitance in his own steps. "...Do you remember it?" he added softly, not meaning to offend.

The twin glanced up at him, and then watched him lower to lift Sora into his arms. A small, contented smile spread upon his lips. Looking from the unconscious brunet to Riku, he murmured, "...Sekai. My name is Sekai."


	2. LOADING--- To Be Remembered

The book dropped to the floor, her eyes wide with jarred shock. The other patrons of the library looked up at her, confusion evident in their myriad of expressions. None of the expressions, however, were nearing concern the way her older companion's did, and he swiftly crossed the small gap between them to come to her side.

"Kairi?" he asked softly. "Are you alright?"

She didn't hear him, nor did she feel the hand placed gently on her backside as she began to lean forward. Her gaze glazed over, her breathing deepened, nearing a panic, and forming tears blurred her vision. Years and years of recollections flowed into her mind, dreams and hopes and wants ringing in her ears of a time distant and yet so harrowingly familiar.

...What...How... _Why_...?

Abruptly, she found her strength and bolted away, not caring as she nearly bumped into people and caused them to scramble out of her path. She all but barreled down the stairs to the ground floor, and then left the first passage of the familiar—horribly familiar—castle to the large foyer before nearing the doors to the outside.

"Kairi! Where are you going?" her friend called to her from the balcony.

...Was he _really_ her friend...? Her conflicting memories both assured and betrayed her. Briefly, she shut her eyes before pushing the castle doors open.

Radiant Garden was magnificent, both memories assured that. The sky was a unique, lovely shade of salmon-pink, with wisps off-white clouds floating about, and further out in the world, there were glimpses of the blue of the ground. Two familiar guards turned around to see her, though their figures clashed harshly with her sets of memories and she tensed upon seeing them.

The two older, burly men nodded respectfully at her, if not suspiciously upon see her distraught expression, and then resumed their posts. However, she didn't give them much of a chance to do so before running away from the approaching footsteps behind her.

"Kairi!" the same young man called out.

As she ran, he heard the older men ask her..."friend" what was wrong, but nothing more before she was too far away. She didn't know where she was going. She didn't know if she _could_ go anywhere. But she ran.

 _Riku_.

The name that just moments ago meant nothing to her rang in her mind.

 _Sora_.

The pools in her eyes broke as she closed them, causing tears to stream down her face.

Rounding a corner, she nearly ran into a tall figure that exclaimed as she ran past. Seeing _them_ sent another chill of clashing familiarity and hostility within her, and she continued to run. They, too, called after her, though questioningly, and from the sound of it, did not pursue.

Inside of a market square, she received several more looks of confusion and growing concern from other faces, new to one set of memories and familiar to another, but ignored them all. Her name was being called, people were wondering. A logical voice inside her mind told her she was only going to make things even more confusing later, but she couldn't listen to that logic. Not when nothing else was making sense. Panic and confusion were rampant within her, adrenaline pumping through her system, and she was sure she could run to the Crystal Fissure if no one stopped her.

Perhaps it was moments, perhaps it was minutes, perhaps it was longer, but what seemed like seconds after that errant train of thought, she _did_ collide into someone, and would have fallen to the ground, if not for deft hands that kept her upright. The force from her movement, however, had them nearly dancing for a moment as the seemingly adult man prevented her from falling. This all happened in seconds, and when they finally went still, she immediately looked up, only to go still with worsening horror.

"Whoa, there, Miss Kairi," the man slightly chuckled, "there's nowhere to go that requires all _that_."

She said nothing, her body tense with apprehension, heavy breaths from exertion emitting from her nose. The brown eyes were unusually friendly, smiling down at her with familiarity that, for the umpteenth time, was familiar to only one set of her confused memories. He let her go, but she didn't move, knowing there was no longer anywhere to go, not with _him_ around.

A black brow rose at her expression and the tears upon her face, his visage turning defensive with concern. "...What's wrong, anyway?" he asked, glancing about them. This was nothing unusual, even to her. He was, after all, also a guard.

...And her personal _guardian_.

Pursing her lips, she inched away, head lowering though she kept her eyes locked on him.

His expression changed. "Oh...You're looking at _me_ like that..." he droned, a strange smile spreading on his pointedly scar-less face. None too comforting. "Not many reasons for _that_ sort of look thrown my way."

Warily, she watched as his arrowgun appeared in a gloved hand, and he looked over it with idle interest. She suddenly found herself hoping she had been followed by that _friend_ of hers...

Her memories of the one called Braig—at least, in the current continuity of memories—were surprisingly friendly, in comparison to the view at them from the second continuity of memories. He was a guard of the castle, like Aeleus and Dilan from earlier, and all three men were present in her earliest memories of peaceful life in Radiant Garden. It was strange. On the one hand, if her rapidly intervening logic was sound, there was actually no reason to be wary of him.

On the other hand, as her warring memories impressed upon her, there was _every_ reason to be wary of the Number II of Organization XIII.

The sudden movement of his gun rising caused her eyes to shut and body to tense in preparation of an attack, and she cried out upon hearing the laser shot. But nothing happened. In fact, after a moment of silence, he softly chuckled. Slowly, she opened her eyes, meeting his wry grin just as he rested his gun on his shoulder.

"Just a Heartless, Miss Kairi," he teased, motioning to something that was behind her with a nod of his head. His gaze was shrewd, expression all too aware. "You're not forgetting _where_ you ran off to, now, did you?"

Only then did she glance around. Indeed, she was far from the inhabited area of the town, nearing the Ravine Trail, and hadn't even noticed in her panic and confusion.

Upon seeing the realization cross her face, he nodded in some semblance of understanding. "Oh, yeah. Preeetty far from where the Claymores can reach. At least for now," he said, his casual words at odds with his expression. He once again eyed his gun. "Ienzo got real worried upon seeing you bolt off like that. Figured you must have finally awoken from that dreamlike existence."

This caught her attention, despite herself. She looked back up at him, managing to softly murmur, "Dream...?"

"Dream _like_ ," he repeated, nodding idly. "So Kingdom Hearts...the Organization...Xehanort...All of that. I get why you're afraid of me. We all went through memories of that. Only ones not awake yet are those two kids—well, they're not _kids_ so much, anymore..."

Her head shook, a trembling hand reaching up to rest on her forehead as a throbbing pain swelled. "I don't...I..." she began, more tears pouring from her closing eyes.

His sly expression finally dropped and he lowered his gun, which disappeared with a haze of purple and black. A soft exhale escaped him, and he focused his attention onto her fully. "...Hell, I'm still just as confused as you are, and I was one of the first to awaken. Let's just get back to the castle; Even and Ienzo can explain more, alright?" he said, his tone different from before. Strangely kind, yet it was also...a familiar kindness. Familiar from _those_ memories.

Wordlessly, she nodded, but slowly sunk to the ground. At first, only a soft whimpering sob escaped her, and she immediately went quiet, but it didn't last longer than a few seconds. In yet seconds more she was sobbing, eyes tightly shut. "S-Sora..." she managed between her cries, holding her head. "Ri-Riku..."

Gone was his playful demeanor, replaced with one of understanding and perhaps undertones of slight guilt. He glanced away from her, placing his hands behind his back, but said nothing.

He didn't so much as twitch when a sudden gust of wind swept through. He merely glanced over. Aeleus and Dilan had arrived, the former of which was lifting Kairi's distraught form gently into his arms. The latter, of course, stood nearer to him, holding one of six gleaming, floating lances at his neck.

"What did you do?" Dilan's deep baritone was almost a growl.

He slightly scoffed, amused, despite everything. "How come Ienzo trusts me more than you do?" he countered. He nodded towards her. "She's _obviously_ taking this all in as wonderfully as you'd expect."

The lance was removed, but it slightly dragged, leaving a superficial scar upon his neck. He scowled, but otherwise didn't react. He and the former Number III of Organization XIII exchanged hostile glances before focusing their attention onto Kairi and Aeleus.

Her adrenaline rush had spent, rendering her lethargic, and the distance she ran didn't aid her situation. She could only cry, tensely huddled in on herself in the man's arms, her body language screaming distrust, wretched confusion and obvious fright. Aeleus' grave expression was turned on them, and they nodded at him.

Upon a magnificent dragon made of lances, the three guards and the Princess returned to the castle in solemn silence, intermittent only with the sounds of soft cries.

 _Sora...Riku..._

Kairi's heart ached in her chest with an overwhelming longing that threatened to swallow her.

 _Where_ are _you...?_

* * *

 **A/N:** L

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Demo 1 is actually the only thing at the moment that may definitely cross over into the main story this is a preview of.

As for this demo...I dunno, I just thought a scene between good!Braig and Kairi would be interesting. Their "new" pasts as friendies makes it even more so...

...This chapter was actually interesting to make. Took me a while to flesh out this random scenario, but interesting, regardless. In comparison, Riku's reaction to "awakening" is...seriously calmer. But considering Kairi is bloody **surrounded** by former _enemies_ and otherwise people she "didn't know"...I thought it made sense. _Some_ sense, at the least...

Anywho.

Sekai is _the_ name I have in my headcanon for any version in any shape or form for the real name of Riku Replica. He needed a bleeding **name** , and much as I think Repliku is endearing, as is Rikuplica...well, you know, a _normal name_ would be nice. Call me out if I'm wrong, but I'm 99% sure "Sekai" means "world", at least roughly, in Japanese. It's the closest thing to "earth" I could come up with off the top of my head, and I really, honestly like it. Goes with the whole "land" thing with Terra and Riku's names. Sort of. Kind of...Whatever, I LIKE IT AT LEAST I _GAVE_ HIM A NAME.

But if Sekai is no longer a replica...who is he, then?

...Huh. Cat-eye pupils for turquoise eyes on silver-haired men. That sounds...oddly familiar...

And c'mon, you _all_ know who the "her" is that Sekai and Riku are referring to...right?

...RIGHT?

And in case you need ages, since I don't think I'll really touch on it, Riku and Sekai are 18 and Sora and Kairi are roughly 16/17.

Please let me know if you think all of this is interesting! If you're confused but intrigued, I must be following the KH guidelines, eh?


	3. Stranger the Faces

The silence in the room was stifling and awkward. And painfully obvious. No amount of gratuitous, gracious cups of tea and coffee would change that. Biting her lower lip, she tentatively glanced about the room. Though they had obviously spoken to each other at least once before then, roughly four of the eight men seemed just as uncomfortable as she was in each other's presence. At least slightly.

Ansem, returning to his chair after passing about drinks for his guests for the third time, seemed to acknowledge her thoughts with an inaudible, patient sigh. She sat closest to him in the only other chair in the room. He wasn't clashing with her memories the way the others did.

Standing near the doorway, Braig kept his eyes on his coffee, blowing gently over the hot liquid before taking a tentative sip. At least half of the room's occupants had glared at him once, but he seemed not to care about it.

Sitting beside Aeleus, Dilan rested his chin upon his folded hands, gaze lowered and evidently contemplative. His tea sat cooling upon the coffee table, undisturbed since it was poured.

Even, on the other hand, openly gazed upon his companions while sitting beside Ienzo. His stark green eyes pierced into each of them, lingering hardest on a certain redhead every now and them. He didn't seem angered over whatever it was causing him to do so, however.

As he sat beside Dilan, Aeleus rested against the couch with his arms crossed, but mirrored his companion's expression with a lowered, contemplative gaze. A deep frown set upon his face, his brows gradually furrowing at some thought.

The barely audible sound of a sip emitted from Ienzo as he drank his tea, his eyes closed and seemingly ignoring most of everyone in the room.

Also rather close to the door, sitting beside his childhood friend, Isa had an arm crossed over his lap and resting on his other. He was expressionless save for the occasional, heavy sigh that caused him to briefly close his eyes.

Lastly, Lea's lithe fingers reached for his cup of coffee, and he emitted a loud, intentional sigh, truly breaking the silence in the room. "So, then, Kairi," he said between a sip, "as you can see, at least half of us hate each other for some reason..."

Even scoffed, "It _would_ be 'some reason' if we didn't exactly know _why_. But what bothers me is that these emotions do not have true bearing in this...timeline."

"Is _that_ what we're calling it, now...?" Braig muttered between another drink of his coffee.

"Do you have a _better_ term, Braig?"

"How 'bout 'Existence', maybe?"

"In _any_ case," the scientist continued, pointedly ignoring him, "I'm irked that we're bothered by events that never actually happened. Perhaps that is why, in fact."

Ienzo hummed. "But do we have _proof_ that it never happened outside of our vivid recollections?" he mused aloud. "Or are our shared memories the only proof we have?"

"I would imagine so, hypothetically."

Braig tried not to roll his eyes. "How the hell would you call that _proof_?" he demanded, looking up at them. "Nothing in our _'now'_ even hints 'that existence' really happened. Who's to say these memories weren't implanted or something?"

"Conspiracies, now?" Even tut, looking away with a dismissively shake of his head.

The raven-haired man dangerously narrowed his eyes. "You _really_ want to make me a villain, don't you?"

"I agree with him, Even," Aeleus murmured, his gaze rising, though not looking at anyone directly. "We cannot forget that he was affected by this, as well. He isn't bound to his memories of what happened any more or less than we are."

"And up until our awakening, we were all living in harmony," Isa added. Beside him, Lea nodded in agreement.

A green eye slanted dangerously. "While I do agree, I'm not so naïve to believe this suddenly means not one of us are _unaffected_ by these recollections. What else of our previous _existences_ , if you will, have each of us told the other in its entirety?" Even coolly asked them at length, glancing at each in the room, save for Kairi. "Secrets? _Lies_? Can we really continue to trust one another as we did in _this_ existence with the possibility of our compromised identities?"

Once more, the room went silent as the weight and implications of his words settled in. Looking at them, Kairi grew worried. She was still coming to uneasy grips that the Organization XIII members from her _other_ memories no longer existed, only for this to make all too much sense.

Were any of them truly trustworthy?

In her mind, the ones they needed to worry about most were Braig, the former confidant of the Organization mastermind; Isa, the former second-in-command of the Organization (and someone who kidnapped her); and Lea, the former assassin with too many ulterior motives...and the first person who kidnapped her. Somehow, she felt her sentiment was also shared amongst some of the others.

The redhead in question, however, was having none of that. "Well, good-fucking-job, Even," he sighed, glaring at the academic. He looked about the faces that focused on him, nodding in sarcastic agreement, before returning his glare upon the older man. "Way to spread the seeds of doubt and mistrust in an already testy situation. What do you want us to do now, huh? Have us locked up for crimes we didn't commit? That'd include you, too...y'know, for fucking _banishing_ your _king_ and all."

Even grimaced, but said nothing in his defense.

"Language, Lea," came Dilan's harsh monotone as he motioned towards Kairi.

She made a face of confusion. "I'm not a child..."

Beginning to open his mouth to say something, he paused in thought. He then smiled a bit, as did Aeleus, Even, and even Braig—though he tried to hide it—and he bowed his head towards her. "My apologies, Miss..."

Huffing, Lea waved his hand. "And what _does_ the royalty say about this?" he asked, addressing her and Ansem, though mainly his king. More than one eye glared disapprovingly upon him at his tone of voice, but he pointedly ignored it.

Having remained silent through this, Ansem spent his time thinking about, contemplating on and digesting both their words and their situation. Several important, poignant points were made, and his eyes briefly closed before he spoke.

"In all the many years we have studied together, both in this existence and the other, there are no words to be found to describe the phenomena we are facing," he carefully mused, slowly shaking his head. His gaze was idle, lowered, and staring past his fingers intertwined before him. "At this point in time, we cannot be sure what action to take, as we don't know the conditions of the other worlds, or if the same worlds are in this existence."

There was another momentary silence as the faces before him reacted accordingly to this realization, and then a spark of an idea shone upon Lea's face.

He leaned forward. "We can always use the Corri—"

" ** _No_** ," Isa growled, causing his friend to startle at the vehemence in his voice. His arms were crossed, upper lip curled in a snarl, though he stared forward at no one. "We are _not_ dealing with the Darkness as we once did, this time. Not again."

Blinking at him, Lea focused fully on his friend. "...Isa..." he began, brows furrowing in concern.

"I agree," Ansem conceded, nodding towards the younger man. "It is too dangerous to open Corridors, as it has always been, and to pass through them as we are now is merely inviting danger."

"But why?" Braig asked, obviously curious. His question was met with a nod from Lea.

Ienzo shrugged, having figured it out. "We simply don't know what's out there, anymore," he simplified.

"The Emblem Heartless do not converge here," Even elaborated, "and goodness knows what that could mean if this is originally where they were discovered—at least, in that other existence. Do they no longer exist? What are the properties of Darkness, now? Who is to say we will even end up where we want if the location no longer exists to begin with? It's simply too risky to simply _traverse_ the Corridors _unprotected_."

Lea grunted, shaking his head. "You are all way too negative," he muttered, looking away from them.

Raising his gaze, Ansem swept the room with his eyes. Nearest to him, Kairi seemed beside herself at the recently spoken words, no doubt distressed over the theory of her friends no longer existing. Evidently, Isa was emotionally distressed over what had happened to him in the other existence, whereas both his friend and Braig were likely thinking of something reckless. Ienzo and Even were quietly theorizing in their minds, as were Aeleus and Dilan, in their unique ways.

There wasn't much to motivate him against explaining the few hopes they had, despite all of this. "There is, however, this good news," he said to them.

All at once, their myriad of eyes focused on him.

He pressed his fingertips together. "If nothing else, we do know this," he began, looking directly at the young woman near him, "that you, Kairi, remain a Princess of Heart."

Her eyes widened. "I...am?" she questioned. "How?"

Suddenly, the other men in the room made various sounds of realization.

Braig reacted first, chuckling to himself and rolling his neck to glance at the ceiling. "It aaall makes sense, now," he drawled with a sigh before returning to his coffee.

"Jeez, is that what was going on?" Lea sighed long-sufferingly, glancing at Isa, who merely shook his head with a small smile.

"Why didn't we recall it sooner?" Even muttered to himself, eyes wide and looking at Ienzo, who mirrored the same expression. "This is wonderful!"

His godson stifled a laugh. "Well, I wouldn't call it 'wonderful', considering all she went through, but it gives so much hope..."

"Incredible. Simply incredible," Dilan murmured, his eyes closed. Beside him, Aeleus hummed in appreciation.

Blinking at them, Kairi's brows furrowed. "I...don't understand?" Just a moment ago, she thought she did, but their all-too-knowing reactions destroyed any hope she had of that. "What does that mean?" she asked Ansem.

The king gave her a slightly apologetic smile on behalf of his apprentices and the two boys. "You likely do not remember, but ever since you were very young, Pureblood Heartless have clamored over you, fighting for your heart, to no avail," he explained. "While this is drastically different from what happened in the previous existence, I believe the reason is because you are a Princess of Heart—a Princess of Heart of _this_ existence."

She shook her head, slowly digesting this. "But that doesn't prove it..."

"No...but there was someone you met several years ago who also sensed the power within you," he continued, "and they sensed it in a way only someone of their kind could. They told me to protect you at all costs, though I had never seen them before. Furthermore, they gave you the very charm you wear to this day." He pointed to the pearl necklace around her neck.

Gasping, she raised it in her palm and stared at it. "...Someone...?" she whispered, distracted by the sudden sheen of magic over it she had never noticed until then.

He leaned back in his chair, lacing his fingers together as he vividly recalled that day. "They parted from Hollow Bastion when you were four, leaving behind your necklace and their name," he said, closing his eyes.

"Their name?" she repeated, peeling her gaze from the pearl. "What was it?"

His eyes opened, and he glanced to the ceiling. "Even after all these years, I've never forgotten. Her name was Aqua."

The moment the name left him, the sudden image of a young woman with blue hair, although blurry, appeared in Kairi's mind. "...Aqua," she breathed, the name filling her with great, renewed hope...and a sudden, overwhelming sadness.


	4. LOADING--- Besiege

From the sound of the noises coming from outside the castle, Radiant Garden seemed to be a battleground. Kairi couldn't believe the invaders were only Heartless and Nobodies, though she was well aware just how army-like and overwhelming the incomplete beings could be; her memories from the other existence in The Castle that Never Was were just the tip of the iceberg, she was sure. From the glimpses she could see of the castle grounds from the windows she passed, the numbers of these beings were absurdly massive. It was a full-scale invasion. They weren't ready for it.

The panic around her was managing to erode whatever calm state of mind she had initially summoned. The inhabitants of the castle, citizens and guards alike, were rushing here and there, being ushered into directions and orders were being relayed. The hand at the small of her back was the only anchor she had to keep her focused on her destination, though she was so overwhelmed, and growing worse, that she scarcely even knew where she was going.

They turned a corner, down a hall, and then towards a room where she immediately noticed the elder woman inside. "Grandma!" she called, immediately running into the room without any encouragement. The woman smiled upon seeing her and held her in her arms when she was hugged.

"Thank you," she heard a familiar voice say to someone, and she broke from the hug to look behind her. Ansem was also in the room, and he was thanking Braig, who had escorted her.

The raven-haired man merely shrugged, but closed the door behind them without facing it. He wore a most unusual and unreadable expression upon his face, but it wasn't a good sign.

"Kairi."

She turned back to her grandmother, who looked upon her with a kind but stern expression.

"It is time to leave. You aren't safe here, dear," the woman said, reaching up to place her hand on her granddaughter's cheek.

At these words, a sudden sadness overcame Kairi, causing her to shake her head in denial at what it must have meant. "...No. I don't want to leave you. Isn't there a way we can all leave, together?" she asked, almost pleading.

The fireplace in the room, at her far right, suddenly went out, catching her attention. She then watched as it then moved backwards, revealing a hidden passageway that two familiar young men entered from.

"Isa, Lea," Ansem addressed them, "is it ready?"

Lea's expression was also unfamiliar to Kairi, and he raised one of his chakram to rest on his shoulder before nodding. "Yeah. Asul has the chocobos ready."

"We await your orders, my lord," Isa added, lowering his claymore to rest on the floor.

The older woman focused her granddaughter's attention back onto her. "Yes, Kairi, there is a way. But there is no time for that. _You_ are the one they are after, and _you_ must leave _now_ ," she insisted, taking Kairi's shoulders and turning her towards Braig.

Kairi felt her eyes watering, looking back at her only blood relative. "But...what if something happens to you?"

"That's not what matters. Braig—"

"Roger."

"Wha—?" Suddenly, she was lifted up and slung over Braig's shoulder, and only while they moved towards the passageway did she notice Aeleus and Dilan near the doors, and that Ienzo was also in the room as he followed behind them. She reached out for her grandmother. "Grandma!" she called, but she was only met with a smile.

Beside her grandmother, Ansem also smiled, watching as they left. The last Kairi saw of them was with Dilan and Aeleus coming to their sides, their expressions solemn yet hopeful, and watching after them. When Darkness then began to envelope her vision, it took a moment for her to realize the entranceway was closing, and she looked back to see her guards traveling swiftly down a dimly lit, downwards-slanted corridor to the unknown. Somehow, Ienzo was now ahead of her and Braig.

This reminded her of her situation. "Put. ME. DOWN!" she shouted at Braig, kicking his chest and back with her feet and fists.

He slightly winced at her blows, but easily obliged, stopping before gently placing her back onto the ground. He did not, however, move, as she didn't, either. Instead, she stood there for a moment, head lowered and hands balled into tight fists.

"...We have to go, miss," he calmly reminded.

The lack of his footsteps behind them prompted the other three to halt, though Lea was impatient. "Kairi, there's no time for this!" he called to her.

A booming sound was heard from outside, causing the passageway to shake and dust to fall from the ceiling, backing up his words. Yet of the four of them, only Lea's expression showed impatience. Isa and Ienzo watched with impeccable patience, as did Braig, watching her.

Finally, she gave a shaky exhale, looking back up to meet his gaze. She said nothing, but unspoken words made it across in the depths of her sad, angry eyes.

He briefly glanced back at the beginning of the passage. "...Think about how we feel, too," he said to her.

Her tense posture slowly eased at his words, and after a moment, she nodded. She then looked down the blackness of the rest of the corridor. "Let's go."

She suddenly ran ahead with determination in her steps, and they let her go, exchanging glances at one another. Ienzo was the first to follow after her, and then Isa, Lea, and Braig followed. The youngest of the men ran in-step with his friend, leading the way.

The further in they went, the deeper into the ground they descended, and after some short minutes they found a staircase that let them to an intersection of tunnels, all somehow dimly lit with old lanterns. Without falter, Ienzo led them down the passage to the upper left, and they did not question him.

After what may have been ten minutes of running down several more passageways, Ienzo came to a sudden halt, holding his hand out for them all to stop. "...Damn..." he softly swore, and he glanced back at his fellow knights. "...We have company down here."

"How many?" Isa asked, his voice lowered.

Ienzo softly inhaled the air, only to scowl. "...Roughly two from the Organization, maybe more. The stench of Darkness is permeating ahead; Heartless, and Nobodies, too. They're still far off, so there's a passage that will run alongside where they might be, if we're fortunate, but we _will_ encounter them sooner than later," he explained in the same tone.

Braig softly scoffed, tapping his arrowguns to his shoulders, and then took the lead. Their movement was swift, but quiet, and as they neared the split passageway, yellow, googly orbs were just becoming apparent in the distance. They swiftly passed to the right, and they found themselves moving up a staircase that was rather tight, causing them to move single-file.

As they ran up, they noticed the small black openings leading to unknown places running alongside the staircases in the walls. Slowly, same thought crept into their minds, but it was already too late to do anything about it.

All at once, they braced themselves just as a portion of the left wall exploded, causing the lights to dim further and knocking some off their feet. A large orb of fire was launched overhead, giving immense light to the now dusty area, but revealed the Heartless as they seeped in from the created hole in the wall.

"Found you~" someone called from the other side.

Ienzo raced to Kairi's side, grabbing her hand, and helped her to her feet. "Move, Kairi, move!" he shouted, just as a great clamor began around them when magic was cast and guns blazed.

The two ran up the stairs, the wall collapsing behind them as they did, but they ran for their lives, knowing they had no choice. Ienzo kept a Barrier up as he ran closest to the wall, shielding Kairi with one hand and his lexicon in his other. Roaring was heard below them, inhuman and fearsome, but Kairi barely had the chance to glance about them as she kept her eyes to the dimming stairs as light became scarce.

They finally came to the top of the staircase, and had only seconds to look around. They were in a large, open area resembling the interior foyer of a great, ancient castle, complete with what may have once been a balcony to their far, upper left and two grand passageways to their left. Perhaps there was more above, but what dim light that somehow existed did not reach the upper walls or the walls further away.

Behind them, the sound of the fighting commotion echoed through the antechamber, causing her to glance back at the staircase nervously. When her companion didn't immediately start leading, she looked at him.

"Ienzo—" she began, but suddenly cried out in surprise when he leapt in front of her with a Barrier erected, just in time to block a ball of Dark Firaga that came towards her out of the blue.

A scoff signaled the presence of a person within the Darkness, but from where was beyond them. A figure donned in a Black Coat then descended from the air, hovering over the ground further ahead of them. "Not bad, Schemer," they drawled.

Lowering his hand to hold out in front of Kairi, Ienzo's eyes narrowed. "I'll take it from here, Kairi," he said to her. He beckoned to the passageways to their right with a nod of his head. "Down the left passageway is a left wall with some markings on it. The ones between the lantern can be pressed, which will reveal another corridor. Go to the surface from there," he instructed in a low, calm voice.

She tensed. "What about—"

"Kairi," he softly hissed between his teeth. "Please...Go."

The loud boom from behind her gave her all the encouragement she needed, her legs taking her towards the menacing darkness in reaction to the sound. Without much more lagging, she turned and left, sparing not a glance behind.

The figure, somehow unsurprisingly, let her go. "...She's not going to get very far," they drawled again, their deep, masculine voice sounding vaguely amused.

Standing upright, Ienzo opened his lexicon, tilting his head up. "Not if I can help it," he countered with a scoff.

These were the last words Kairi heard as she disappeared down the passageway. It was very wide, but perhaps not so deep, though there were parts of it further inwards that were broken and missing. Instead of stone, she saw rock, reminding her she was still underground. As the sounds of fighting and spellcasting reached her ears, she stayed nearest to the left wall, where there were indeed markings upon it, though their exact designs were angrily scratched out.

She didn't take her time admiring or examining them, immediately moving to where the dimly lit lantern was and looking upon the two scratched markings at its sides. Reaching up, she pressed against them with her fingers, and the light went out in response. From where the lantern and the three markings were, the wall rose upwards, folding the lantern inwards, revealing another staircase going towards the surface, just as Ienzo said.

Thinking about her friend, and her companions likely still fighting the enemy further down, she pursed her lips before running up without falter.

Unlike the other passageways, this one lacked light of any magical sort entirely. Feeling her way up, she did find herself moving a little slower than she wanted. Despite everything, the last thing she wanted was to handicap herself by running blindly into or down something, though for all intents and purposes, she really was blind. The darkness was a true blackness; she couldn't even see her hand in her face. Fortunately, the stairs seemed entirely intact and, unlike the previous staircases, free of debris.

As she ran, she kept her thoughts from straying down negative paths. This was no one's fault. There was nothing anyone could have done about this invasion, nothing anyone could have done to prepare so soon—if at all. The more she said these things to herself within her mind, the angrier her expression grew, until she pounded up the steps in her mix of determination, frustration and sadness.

The sudden top stair took her by surprise, and she stumbled, almost falling onto her face. Blindly, she held out her hands, feeling around, and the sound of her hammering heart suddenly became so audible in her ears. At its sound, she decided to allow herself a moment to take a breather, but _only_ a moment, and moved back to where the staircase was to feel for a wall it connected to now that she was at the top.

With her foot, she reached out and found the stairs again, then moved her foot along its rim and found a wall at its technical left, her right. She moved to it gingerly, only pressing herself closer when she was sure it didn't have any sort of opening upon it. Then, finally, she leaned on it, bending over to grasp her thighs and catch her breath.

One, inhale.

Two, inhale.

Three, inhale.

Four, inhale.

She moved off, using her hands to feel along her left side and continued down what she hoped was a hall. Ienzo hadn't exactly specified whether there were any _other_ corridors after the staircase, just that she could get to the surface from where she was. How the young genius knew this was beyond her, though all her companions seemed to know at least a bit about the forgotten underground, now that she thought about it...

The muffled boom, resounding sounds of rocks falling somewhere and the dust that rose did little to shake her, this time. Softly, she sneezed, blinking the dust out of her eyes, and picked up her pace.

She sensed the danger before she saw it, the movement in her vision that seemed impossible when all that was before her was darkness. Not needing a prompt, she dodged away from the Heartless that suddenly spawned within the corridor, and forsook her initial idea of pacing herself to run forward. The multiple glowing eyes suddenly become too obvious, peeking through what must have been cracks in the right wall, and even ahead of her.

Unafraid, she raised her hands and cast Aerora around her just before using a similar variant to create a whirlwind that blew down the hall, destroying and knocking back the Heartless in her path. Fortunately, she caught the familiar sight of what was likely a lantern, perhaps around a corner.

Another blast of Aero eradicated the Heartless in the hall as she came to the corner, and indeed, there was a lantern on the left wall. Just as her foot stepped into the new corridor, a figure appeared further down it.

"There you are."

Alarmed, she recoiled back. "Stopga!" she shouted, and hesitated for only a moment when the spell took effect, halting the figure in place. Between the hall they were in and the long hall before her, she decided to chance it, and ran past the figure halted in time.

This corridor was short, and it led to another to her right, which led to one to her left, and so on. More and more Heartless were converging, and she began to worry she may have chosen the wrong path. Darkballs and Neoshadows were taking the places of simple Shadows in waves, which she was able to destroy, but only to convince her of her error.

She chose the wrong path.

Regardless, she pressed on, steadying herself when a rumble shook the corridor. Briefly, she rested against a wall, panting softly. The stings from her cuts caused by Neoshadow claws were irritated, and she could sense her magic reserves were low from all the spells she had used.

The sudden explosion behind her startled her, and she moved to her feet upon seeing the same hooded figure from before emerging from the downed wall. Somehow, she had a feeling they were not very happy with her spell from earlier.

They rushed at her, and she had only time to summon a Reflega, which did its job when they recoiled from the counterattack. It was hard to see with such little light, but she thought she saw some sort of large weapon they held with one hand. Or maybe not. Taking the chance, she moved backwards, using one hand to keep her near a wall, and had her other raised before her to use for spells.

Again, they rushed forward, only this time when she used Reflega, they did as well in response. She cried out as she took the hit and was flung against the far back wall from the recoil. But she wasn't done, yet. "Aeroga!"

Momentarily, the figure disappeared as the whirlwind went through, giving her a chance to get back onto her feet and run away. She was beginning to lose composure, her breathing hard and panicked. How was she going to get _out_ of this maze...?

She suddenly stopped at an intersection of passageways leading right, left, forward, and...even directly above her. The sound of a spell met her ear, and she turned around to brace herself for the attack when the familiar sound of laserfire erupted above her, just as a Barrier was erected to block the Dark Firaga that nearly hit her head-on.

She watched in awe as the red lasers hailed upon the figure, engulfing the hall with reddish light and bringing up dust as likely a good portion of the hall collapsed. Someone took her arm and pulled her away, and she let them, turning to see Ienzo as they ran down the forward hall. Glancing back, she spotted Braig lowering to the ground from the ceiling before steadily following them, though he continued firing.

Wordlessly, Ienzo led them to a staircase on the side of a wall, and it was so strangely obvious and in the open that Kairi stifled a choked, disappointed sob. His hand moved to grasp hers as he led the way up the dark hall. There were many landings as they went up, and somehow this felt to be the way out of the underground maze. One last rumble shook through, just as Ienzo let go of her hand to press against a wall in front of them. Slowly, it moved to reveal the dark, cool air of the outside castle wall.

The second it moved, Lea came into view, and he urgently pulled them off the slanted staircase. "Where's Braig?" he asked them after helping her out, looking down the stairs to see nothing but blackness.

Ienzo glanced around, brows furrowing. "He was right behind us..."

A warping sound alerted them to the appearance of the older knight behind them as he reloaded his guns. "Right here."

Without waiting for a prompt, Lea closed the "door" to the underground passage, which looked no different from natural rock, and then joined them as they moved over to and then ran across the castle bridge.

Being out in the open revealed that the battle against the Dark forces was still raging outside of the castle as well. Here was where the armored soldiers fought against more powerful Heartless, such as Darksides, and several Twilight Thorn Nobodies. Unfortunately, their encounter with at least two of the Organization's members only meant their "secret" escape wasn't going to stay that way very long.

Once off the bridge, they took up their weapons and cast magic to create a path through the battlefield. "Where is Isa?" Kairi asked as they ran, her eyes focused on the distant mountains past the castle, which was their destination.

Lea jumped back to her side, recovering from an executed attack further ahead. "Don't worry about him! He knows what he's doing!" he said above the roar of battle.

Their small party of five went largely undetected as they cut through, and they were careful not to use more powerful attacks that would catch the attention of the more intelligent Nobodies. Braig's sharp eyes, even in the darkness, kept a lookout for any that seemed too keen for their own good, abruptly disappearing to snipe them before reappearing at the rear. Lea was the front fighter, jumping ahead to take out larger enemies with harder hits before recovering at the left flank. Ienzo, while he stayed at the right flank, had 360° defense around the four of them, using every spell at his disposal with nearly limitless magic reserves.

Soon they made it behind the battlefront, where they briefly caught their breath at a clearing at the beginning of the Ravine Trail similar to a smaller Great Maw. Much further away, Lea caught a glance of a crevasse, and he pointed to it.

"There. Asul should be there," he said to the party.

"Good." Braig huffed, reloading his arrowguns for the umpteenth time. He began to move ahead. "C'mon, kids. The sooner we get g—"

He cut his sentence short upon the appearance of several figures in Black Coats that appeared around the group atop the walls, looking down at them. He immediately counted a total of seven, causing him to frown. That frown only deepened when Heartless and Nobodies of all varieties manifested around them.

Nothing was said between the two parties as Kairi and her companions went on guard. She had her hands raised, Ienzo held his lexicon open in his hand and Braig held his guns out in his hands. Lea on the other hand, simply let his chakram disappear.

"I got this," he said softly, just loud enough for them to hear.

At first, no one thought much of this...until their pyrokinetic companion began to emit heat.

Ienzo was the first to piece things together. His eyes widened with worry and he moved away from Lea, pulling Kairi with him. "Wait, Lea...what do yo—?"

Sparks formed in the air, and flames flicked around Lea's hands. "I said I _got_ this," he repeated, closing his eyes.

Braig noticed a tad too late, and he immediately came beside Ienzo and Kairi. They watched as Lea raised into the air, his arms crossed with his hands in fists while the flames moved to his clothes and skin.

At least one of the hooded figures suddenly disappeared.

Finally, Lea cried out, just as both Kairi and Ienzo raised Barriers, and the area was enveloped with a fiery explosion that emitted from Lea's form.

One after another, Heartless disappeared, hearts rising to the sky, and the Nobodies tried to escape the wave of fire by flying away, but most were engulfed in the flames. The blast even crawled up the walls, though by the time the blast neared the walls, the hooded figures had all disappeared.

Further away, a young male Guado watched in a mix of awe and concern, and he eased the startled chocobos with soft sounds. They were too far away for the fire to reach, but the heat was another thing entirely.

Suddenly, Braig appeared a few feet from him and collapsed to his knees, holding both Kairi and Ienzo. He let them go after he collapsed, and Kairi was the first to recover, holding him up by his arm.

"Asul," he said, shaking off his exhaustion, "we gotta go." He gave Kairi a nod of assurance, and only then did she let him go as he moved to his feet.

The young Guado's brows furrowed, though he didn't hesitate to bring the chocobos over to them or mount his own. "Where are Isa and Lea?" he asked.

Kairi climbed upon her chocobo, and Braig climbed up behind her. Asul met her gaze, and she pursed her lips, shaking her head before looking away.

He understood, and waited only for Ienzo to mount his ride before they left, taking the path down the Ravine Trail. The riderless chocobo came along with them, as Asul had its reins tied to his.

As they moved, Kairi looked back at the easing explosion. She couldn't see anyone, though Heartless were respawning. Perhaps Lea was still alive, after that...? She wanted to ask them— _order_ them—to turn back, but she knew it would be against even the pyrokinetic's wishes.

As if answering her prayers, a figure suddenly jumped down from the rock walls, immediately fending off the Heartless and the Nobodies that were returning to finish off what Kairi presumed was Lea's body on the ground. The long blue hair and the giant claymore gave it away, even from such a distance.

"Isa!" she gasped, and looked up at Braig.

His expression slightly changed, but he shook his head. To her surprise, he instead called, "Asul!"

Without any other prompt, Asul turned his and the spare chocobo around. Smiling, Kairi watched after him.

Isa held Lea's limp body over his shoulder, fending off the creatures of darkness single-handedly. He even began to fend off at least one hooded figure, but they retreated when Asul entered the fray. When the riderless chocobo passed him by, Isa only grabbed onto the reins before lifting both him and Lea up onto the saddle.

As they turned around, they didn't go down the path leading to the Trail, but down and off the beaten path instead. Further ahead, also off the path, the two chocobos upon which Ienzo, Braig and Kairi rode were visible.

Repositioning his unconscious friend in front of him, Isa held his claymore at his side as more enemies spawned before him, blocking his and Asul's path. There was no time to back down, but they were going to make it.

 _All_ of them.


	5. Dead Light

There was a lab within the Academic's division that stayed almost constantly within a state of perpetual coldness. While it normally wasn't the case, in this instance, it wasn't the safe, freezer chill that would merely keep important substances within safe zones, but the dangerous, blizzard cold that would cause frostbite in mere minutes if skin was left exposed. For some unfortunate, necessary reason, this was where Braig found himself, traveling down the heated staircase at a steady pace.

Since their Awakening, as it was dubbed, the "former apprentices" of Ansem the Wise had to take some reasonable time to digest the information they told one another from their previous existences. Was there any right terminology for such...memories...feelings...thoughts... _lives_? Regardless, none of it ever happened, not in the current existence. But in the case of some of their revelations, it didn't seem to matter.

Take, for instance, their betrayal of Ansem. Even then, he was their king, and they _banished_ him to the Realm of Darkness. That weighed heavily on them, but each was also certain, as was Ansem himself, that they would never do such a thing in the _current_ existence. At least...mostly certain.

Eyes hadn't rested upon him, words weren't directed at him, but it was obvious to him. They didn't trust _him_ , the only one who had known of those events that occurred before they happened and the dark motives behind them.

...He didn't blame them, not too much. Not at the time of his initial recollection. Now...

It was getting irritating.

A sigh escaped him, and the cloud of breath took him by surprise, yet he remained visually impassive. That was the only reaction to this nonsense he allowed himself: simple resigned sighs. Their mistrust of him was misplaced, and imagined if they were thinking clearly, they would be aware of that. He could only hope their current memories would overshadow their..."previous" ones, if they still harbored even slight suspicion against him.

He stood before the wide double doors iced over with frost, his breath coming out in steady puffs, and found himself strangely hesitant. His _body_ was hesitant, and it had nothing to do with the cold environment despite his lack of protection outside of his uniform. His element's unique ability to shield him from the cold was handy for such things...

Before he could make his body do what he wanted, the doors creaked opened, causing him to blink before settling into resigned acceptance. No point in hesitating if his host knew he was there. As always.

He took a step inside of the freezing room, barely picking out Even's figure from amongst the frost that covered nearly everything. The second he stepped in, he cut to the chase, asking, "Even, I need you to look at my eye."

Soft clinking ceased, and then the scientist glanced back, revealing his unnatural bluish, veiny pale skin and icy green gaze that never ceased to unnerve Braig despite everything. The likely at first peeved expression the older Knight leveled at him, however, was easing. He seemed to consider him, and then beckoned him further in with a motion of his head, lowering his hands from his work.

Suddenly, the room's temperature rose. Steadily, of course, so nothing would break from the warmth, but it was obvious to an elemental user such as Braig. He walked in and towards an area further to the left of the lab where tests were taken on willing patients. It was an area fixed akin to a hospital room, yet somehow, despite residing in the lab of a scientist, appeared more appealing than those.

Even's lab was a location that operated bizarrely, with technology working despite how ridiculously cold it could get. Braig did not and could not understand it, and spent a good chunk of his younger days as a guard trying to figure it all out. So now, as a Knight, he didn't bother...or at least tried to. He was just starting to wonder if Even himself caused the technology to move, somehow...

He neared a rising seat that positioned itself similarly to a dentist's chair in an upright position and sat upon it. Even neared a cart on wheels, slipping a new pair of gloves onto his hands.

"You surprise me, Braig, coming into my lab so soon," the scientist admitted, wheeling the cart over to the right side of the seat.

Braig rose a slender brow, reserved and untroubled. "...Oh...?"

A small, humored smile began to spread on Even's face. He didn't answer immediately, and moved to use his foot to activate a lever that caused the head of the chair to hold the younger man's head in place with what almost appeared to be a headband. It seemed expected, as Braig didn't react. With another maneuver of the lever, an overhead light moved almost directly over his face. Again, it was expected.

"...Perhaps it's just me, then..." Even hummed, coming to Braig's right side and turning his attention to the right eye as he lifted a strange utensil from the cart.

Braig kept his gaze forward, looking just past the older man. The utensil's end was thin and bent, and it only tapped a small surface near the tear duct of his right eye's sclera. His vision in that eye suddenly went dark, and from then on, he could only figure what was going on. 44Even moved to another utensil. There was a gentle, tickling pull, then a soft squelching, followed by something being removed and then disconnected. He caught a glimpse of the faux eyeball being moved to the cart, and then decided not to focus on it too much.

"Let me guess," he said, idly tapping the armrests with his fingers, "it's about my...standing here in the castle?"

Even wasn't paying attention to him, so it took a moment for a response. He was working with the artificial eye. "...Yes."

A slight shrug. "I try not to care. Annoying as hell, though," Braig muttered.

"You can _try_ not to care, but it's understandable that it would," Even responded. He suddenly asked, "How in the name of _Kingdom Hearts_ did you manage to—"

"Don't ask."

Surprisingly, there was slight hesitance before a response. "...Do not let it happen again."

"Roger."

Even softly sighed before continuing, "We've all changed from our...memories of Before. For years we've trusted each other with our very lives..."

Though he was listening, Braig caught another glimpse of the artificial eye as Even moved to his left side with it upon a dish with liquid in it. A part of the faux eyeball's optic nerve seemed damaged even from his view.

"It's only natural, as human beings, to feel...betrayed. Even for you."

Braig frowned. He never thought of it that way. "Betrayed" was a strong word. Was that how he felt, being treated with mistrust for something he didn't actually do...?

There was a momentary silence as Even worked shortly on the eyeball at another nearby table. Before long, he returned to Braig's right side to place the eye back in.

There was a feeling of connection, somehow, then more soft squelching, and then a soft, pushing sensation. After a moment, suddenly, he could see Even's face clearly again as his 20-20 vision returned. That same thin, bent utensil was returned to the cart.

"Operation a success," Even announced, removing his gloves. His expression was somehow...knowing.

At once, the seat moved Braig entirely upright and the headrest released his head. He sat away from the cushions and moved his feet onto the floor, but his gaze lowered. "...Spill it, Even," he finally said.

Placing the gloves on the cart, Even kept his own gaze upon it as well. "What I am trying to say is, don't feel as if you have to prove something. There's nothing for you to prove." He wheeled the cart away.

Braig glanced over into his direction, still unmoved in thought. "...As if. You had one of the worst reactions to our recollections—and that's not including my info."

"And once I could collect myself, I realized it was a reaction entirely unwarranted." After washing his hands at a nearby sink, the head scientist turned to him, his expression truly sincere. "...I apologize for that."

Brown eyes lowered again, their owner softly huffing with a small smile. "...Don't worry about it," he drawled.

Even slightly raised his head, as did a blond eyebrow in unison, before approaching his companion. "In any case, know I've moved past your...previous vices..."

Braig looked up when the scientist stood near him.

"You are a valued comrade and friend," Even acknowledged with a smile. "The others should remember that soon."

A sincere smile of his own spread on Braig's face. He stood, head tilting to the side. "You'd think, huh? It's been damn near a week, now..."

Even managed a small shrug. "Perhaps they don't know how to face their misgivings. They'll cave, eventually..."

Braig walked towards the lab tables, but not before patting him on the shoulder. "Thanks," he said.

"My pleasure." Even turned to watch him, slowly following from behind. His eyes drifted to the younger man's left arm wrapped with bandages. Once Braig stepped a single foot onto the lowest stair past the doors, however, he finally said, "Feel free to come by, again, if you need my help with your...condition."

The words were said so knowingly, so unnervingly _deliberate_ , that Braig slowed his steps before coming to a dead halt. He didn't mean to, and knew immediately when he did that he shouldn't have. But it was too late, so he slowly looked back at Even, who had his hands clasped behind his back as he turned from the doorway. Casual. Deliberate. Even the doors remained open, inviting him back inside.

Braig warred within himself. Already, he said so much despite doing so little, and it wasn't right at all. Dare he think it wasn't fair, even. Now he wanted answers.

He lowered a foot on a higher stair, leaning upon the rail. "If by my condition you mean—"

"Your arm. Of course." Having stopped in his tracks, Even glanced back at him.

Fingers too accustomed to pulling triggers twitched. "...I've told you...there's nothing wrong with—"

"Yes, there's nothing _wrong_ with your arm. There's nothing _wrong_ with _you_."

"Then what are you on about?"

Even heaved a patient sigh. "Do I need to enunciate it to you?"

Another twitch. It itched. "That'd be nice, sure."

A painfully languid expression was turned onto the sharpshooter. "If I say it plainly, will you drop the act?" the scientist asked.

Braig rested his arm on the rail. "Gee. I dunno."

"Very well..." He was beckoned down.

His eyes narrowed further, and he grudgingly walked the six steps down to the ground level, back into the lab, closed the door, and then approached his friend. When he did, Even moved to his side and leaned to whisper something into his ear.

His eyes widened to saucers in a mix of horror and shock by two simple words. He slightly moved away, staring up at the academic. "...How do you know?"

"Experiments. Social experiments," Even admitted, moving back a respectful distance. He beckoned to the artificial eye. "Ever since that day, I've been conducting experiments on you and your ward."

"On _HER_?" Braig snapped, his expression darkening dangerously.

But Even only forced himself not to roll his eyes. "I said _social_ experiments, for goodness' sake. Ones you practically handed to me, in fact."

The younger Knight's expression changed dramatically. He glanced away, his hands clenching and unclenching, and then he grimaced in resignation. Someone like Even _would_ have noticed, eventually, after that day. "...Experiments..." he softly repeated.

A sly, complacent smile spread on Even's face. He softly chuckled while moving away and unclasped his hands from behind his back. "I'm a scientist. Experiments are what I do... _yes_."

Braig closed his eyes, though his expression was easing. Soon, he even chuckled to himself, cracking an awry smile. "...That really isn't right, you know that?" he sighed. He then crossed his arms. "...So, then. What, now?"

"Nothing." Even shook his head. "Absolutely nothing. Both you and Miss Kairi were born as you are, and that is that."

Tilting his head, Braig opened his left eye to glance at his fellow Knight. He'd be lying to himself if he said he wasn't impressed by this revelation. "...You aren't afraid...not even worried." It wasn't a question. "...I've a feeling it's not from you being a scientist."

"Indeed..." The older man sat upon a chair at a table, crossing his legs. "Darkness and Light are both requirements to our existences as beings. Furthermore, as I said earlier, there is nothing you need to prove, on your behalf. Your actions up to this point have already determined my thoughts on your character, regardless of what you are."

Braig couldn't help but smile in a sort of uneasy relief. He briefly glanced away. "...Well, that's...good to know. Good to know..." He finally reached with his right hand to gently rub his upper left arm, where it throbbed underneath his touch. "...Sure. If anything comes up, I'll let you know. Sure as hell would've been nice to know this years ago, to be honest. You have no idea what I've dealt with, having this thing inside me."

Green eyes focused on that spot. "I can only imagine," Even readily acknowledged, nodding in sincere understanding.

As a scientist, he was internally ecstatic to know not one but _two_ of the Pieces, and be in the current presence of one of the lesser known ones—the lesser known and lesser liked Pieces. Yet that was just it.

Braig, his friend of many years, had a Dark piece of the χ-blade as his heart.

Kairi, Braig's ward and Radiant Garden's Child, had a Light piece of the χ-blade as her heart.

They were literal antithesis of one another, and yet friends for sixteen years upon the same world. Even's brows furrowed in awe and wonder.

...What were the odds of that?


	6. LOADING--- Breathe In

Deep blue eyes opened, blinking up at a cloudless sky. Their owner slowly sat up, blearily gazing out at the ocean before letting out a yawn. Lying down again, the teen closed his eyes to resume his sleeping. Over the sound of waves steadily crashing the sand and islet rock, a faint sound reached his ears. It was dreamlike, nearly lulling him back to unconsciousness...

...Except...

This wasn't right. Despite this thought, he was pulled back into a dream, where a stormy island shattered beneath his feet, dragging him down into a watery abyss.

Behind his eyelids, a blurry image of his hand reaching out to...

With a gasp, his eyes snapped open and he shot upright, panicked with realization. "Kairi..." he whispered, his head turning into the direction of the islet where he last saw his friends. "...Riku!"

He was on his feet and running towards the ramp leading to the elevated land before he even realized what he was doing. From his distance, he couldn't see anyone, but that didn't mean someone wasn't lying down, he decided. However, he suddenly stopped in his tracks when a familiar teen emerged from the entrance to the secret cave.

Breaking into a wide, relieved smile, he breathed, "Riku!" He all but jumped on his friend with an enthusiastic glom that almost sent them stumbling to the ground. "Riku, you're okay!"

The older teen, though startled, was also accustomed to his friend's...optimism. He steadied himself, patting the brunet on the back with a patient sigh. "Yes, Sora, I'm perfectly fine. What's up?" he asked nonchalantly, a small smile quirking at the corner of his lips.

Moving back by a bit, Sora looked up into his eyes. "...What do you mean, what's up? Are you sure you're okay? Do you have any idea what happened or how we got back here or...where's Kairi?" The questions flew from his mouth in a single breath, but he was distracted by a budding worry to even seem to notice.

A silver brow rose, though Riku seemed slightly amused. "Hmm..." Head tilted slightly to the side, he replied, "Well, you seem panicked. I feel just fine. I have no idea what you're talking about and I don't know someone named 'Kairi'."

Against his will, the budding sensation within Sora spiked to his throat. He felt a chill of dread run through him, causing him to physically shiver, though he tried to shrug it off. "...C-c'mon, Riku, you...you know Kairi. She's our closest friend," he said softly, trying and failing to hide his shocked horror.

Noticing this, Riku frowned while crossing his arms and looked away in thought. "...Sorry, Sora. This is the first time you've ever mentioned her... _ever_." Out of the corner of his eye, he glanced at his downcast friend. "...I was going to ask if she was some dream girl of yours, but..."

Sora pursed his lips, taking a small step back.

"...Never mind. Tell me more about her." Riku walked past his friend and towards the small shack to Sora's far right.

Despite the overwhelming emotions rising within him, in that moment, Sora was strangely reminded at how thankful he was to have Riku as a friend. The older teen knew when to play around and when not to. He briefly rubbed his arm, glancing at the ground in an attempt to hold himself together before slowly following behind Riku. His gaze wondered up, lingering momentarily on the older teen entering the shack, before rising to the sky.

...Something happened. He could almost... _feel_ it. That simple fact alone was unnerving. It wasn't _right_.

 _Where_ are _you, Kairi...?_

Riku walked through the shack, up the stairs and out of the second door to the small land where a bridge stretched before him to the islet. He heard the softer, slower footsteps of his friend behind him and let him take his time. On the other hand, he was conflicted and confused as hell.

This really _was_ the first time in Riku's life he could ever recall Sora mention this "Kairi" person. If he didn't know Sora the way he did, he would have easily dismissed it as a too-real dream experience, but the brunet wasn't the sort to play around in such a way resembling emotional tricks on others. Or himself, for that matter; Riku clenched his teeth at the thought of Sora's look of... _betrayal_ , almost, that clouded his face. This person was _obviously_ dear to Sora for him to have reacted in such a way.

...Kairi...

 _Kairi_.

...He couldn't recall anyone...

Instinctually, even while ruminating, Riku jumped over the sideways-lying tree trunk to rest against it, crossing his arms once more. The sound of footsteps over the bridge closed in behind him, and he stared off at the ocean before him with irritation rising within. Not at Sora, but at himself for...whatever, which only irritated him further. Furthermore, the question was, how to bring up a conversation about this girl without hurting Sora more...?

Soon the familiar tanned legs swung over the side of the trunk as Sora sat upon it, slightly leaning against the curved side. Dejection was clear on his face, as if he had given up hiding it, but confusion was also clear upon his features. Curious...

The two friends sat in silence for a moment or so, Riku watching the ocean while lost in his mind and Sora staring at the ground while spinning within his own. Sora then deeply exhaled, head slightly rising, before speaking.

"...She's my age...has strawberry red hair...and blue eyes." He sighed, looking up to the endless blue of the sky. "...She's...spunky...likes to work with her hands and create stuff. She made a charm made from thalassa shells for me, but...I gave it back to her..." This seemed to remind him of something and he paused, head lowering again at the odds against him.

Riku slightly turned his head to look at him during the pause, only to frown at the further dejection upon his friend's face. The emotion was foreign to see in conjunction with Sora's being, and that bothered him. This Kairi sounded like someone...Sora really admired...and had for a long time, impossible as that sounded.

"...Hey..."

"...Yeah?" He looked at the brunet completely.

"...Do...Keyblades...or Kingdom Hearts...and Darkness and Light sound familiar to you?" Sora softly asked.

Once more, Riku clenched his teeth together. "...No," he responded, his voice just as soft. At the soft sigh that followed from his companion, he looked forward. "...I don't know how to word this, Sora...but this is really..."

"...Weird," Sora finished, slightly nodding. "I know. But I know what I remember..."

Riku shook his head. "Do you remember everything else, though? What we did today? Well..." he softly chuckled, "what we were _supposed_ to do?"

To Sora's own surprise, the memory was fresh in his mind. "...Actually, I do..." His brows furrowed. "In fact, I remember everything, really. The night I met you, you scared me. I kept saying your eyes were glowing or something, not that I believe that, anymore. You're...around eighteen...and I'm...gonna be seventeen. Wow..."

"That's new to you?" Riku uncrossed his arms, looking up at his friend in surprised worry.

Sora shrugged. "I dunno, I have...conflicting...memories...?" He scratched the back of his head. "That seems about right...I have memories of two different...pasts? I mean complete pasts, with facts and everything. But so much of it is different from one another."

"Like?"

"Well, in the other past, you were sixteen and I was fifteen, like Kairi. Ah, and _she_ was the one to wash up on shore...while in the past I guess you remember, _you_ appeared on the beach, sick and...The biggest difference right now is that...a year ago, you, me and Kairi were separated from the Islands one night. These creatures called the Heartless appeared and _everything_ had changed..."

Listening closely, Riku leaned on his side while watching Sora explain.

"We appeared on different worlds..." The blue eyes went alit with realization and smiled down at him. "Like that guy we heard about, who disappeared to another world all those years ago. We went to other worlds, too! Amazing worlds...and...we learned about Darkness and Light...and Kingdom Hearts and the Keyblades. You and I fought a few times...because you wanted to help Kairi, since she lost her heart, but I was trying to find you two while also helping all of the worlds. It worked out, eventually..."

"You're leaving a lot out, aren't you?"

"...It's a bit overwhelming, figuring out how to explain it all in order...We went through so much...I thought...I lost you, too..."

Riku startled upright when Sora's eyes began to water. Like a fish out of water, he opened his mouth to say something, but nothing came out.

Leaning forward, Sora covered his face with his hands. "...Did I...lose Kairi, now...?" he asked no one, voice breaking as he cried.

Seeing his best friend crying and hearing those words seemed to trigger something within Riku, causing his expression to rapidly darken. Head slowly turning to glare out at the water, he softly growled, "I don't like this..."

Sora was quick to rub his face of his tears, too conflicted to be sure if his crying was justified or not. Through his sniffles, he managed a confused, "...Huh?"

"I don't like this!" Riku repeated, turning to face Sora again. On the tree, his hand was clenched in a tight fist. "There's something up. It doesn't make sense that you remember _two_ pasts; it wouldn't make sense for anyone. There's got to be an explanation."

Watching as the silver-haired teen stalked off seething towards the island at first worried Sora, but a grateful smile was soon to form on his face. He rubbed at his eyes. "...Thanks, Riku..." he whispered to himself. After closing his eyes for a brief moment, regaining his composure, he jumped down from the tree and ran after his best friend with renewed hope despite having lost it so abruptly.

* * *

 **A/N:** L

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This is yet another scene that is definitely going to be part of the main story. With little if _no_ changes whatsoever. I really like it. I'm noticing a sort-of theme in my new retelling that I'm really liking. That theme is vulnerability. So many strong people...are shown to be so _vulnerable_ at times in this series. Kairi...Braig...and now Sora. I can't wait to work on more characters...!

No, my love for Braig or Kairi-centric scenes hasn't ended. I just had this for a while and thought I'd break the feel of things with it. It's very nice, methinks...It's also a remake of an 11-year-old chapter I made in 2006 for the first incarnation of this KH fanfiction project...

OH OH~! If anyone—anyone at all—wants to get _caught up_ in the canon elements of the _story_ , though not actually _read_ **the** story, you can read and find out more on the main story's wiki, Jiminy's Journal! Address is site/twtnsdataspace. Please check it out if you like my project thus far, though take note you don't have to read the story from the tab _The story thus far_ , which, again, tells of the canon events touched upon here in the demos. All other articles are 100% safe without spoilers to important events in the series that I have fully developed already...If anything, it's purely informational to the new changes made to KH as everyone knows it.

Also, it's not 100% done, since I'm working diligently on the character files...

Please please please please check it out, sometime~

Thank you for reading~


	7. Reunion of Antitheses

Kairi sat in the castle library, resting her head upon her left palm while reading her homework over. Or trying to. Her mind was much too distracted, and her eyes had long ago stopped scanning the pages to stare off idly at the table. While not the norm, there weren't many patrons within the library to bother or distract her, which was just the way she wanted it on this particular day.

Six days had passed since she recalled her memories of the "previous existence", as those who remembered called it. Six days to yearn for things she wasn't sure she should yearn for, and six days to wonder if the world she once called home even existed, anymore. It was truly disheartening, being unable to venture off-world, just as it had been in her memories of staying on the islands day after day, wondering when the two boys she called her best friends would come back home.

For the umpteenth time that day, she sighed audibly, which only sounded that much louder within the empty room.

Seconds after, she felt just the barest change in the room's atmosphere. A dark shadow of sorts passed through the room in her vision, yet it wasn't menacing to her, instead coming across as familiar. After so many years, that's all it was, which was an amazing accomplishment, considering how unnerving it was when she was younger...

She only sighed yet again before murmuring, "I'm not in the mood, Braig."

Behind her, the Knight stopped in his motion to speak with a hand raised in unison. He slightly frowned, but it was playful. "Aw. C'mon...you don't even know what I'm gonna say," he said, coming around to the right side of the table and resting his hands upon it. He briefly took in her somber demeanor before a sly smile spread upon his face. "I've got a surprise for you."

Her expression did change at this, but only by a bit, to her credit. She tried not to give away any true interest in what he said, but the truth was whenever her guardian had something to "surprise" her with, it was indeed something worth looking forward to.

With this in mind, she sighed again before looking up at him, taking in his casual attire and braided ponytail draped over his shoulder. So lost she had been in her thoughts of late, she forgot he was given the day off; a rare occurrence for him. That _would_ explain why she only sensed him near and hadn't quite seen him for most of the afternoon...

...Her thoughts were consuming her if she hadn't even realized _that_...

His expression slightly dropped when their gazes met, causing her to glance away. He stood upright, flashing a reassuring smile. "...You're gonna _looove_ iiit~" he sang, tapping the table with his fingers. "I promise."

She didn't immediately respond. As the minutes went on, she gradually smiled before looking back at him. She finally closed her book with her free hand. "Okay," she easily relented. The last thing she then saw was him brandishing a mischievous grin before her vision went black, the feel of a large hand over her eyes. She opted to sigh. "...Braig..."

He helped her stand with his free hand. "It's a surprise. Can't show it to you, yet," he said as if it answered everything.

...And, well...it did.

She let him lead her out of the library, down the staircase to the main floor and...after that, she lost their position on her mental map. He managed to lead her somewhere further than she thought, but by the waning sounds, she guessed they were likely heading towards the guest wing, which was always quiet.

"...Hello, Kairi," an amused voice greeted, entirely unbothered by her being led by her guardian in such a strange manner.

She recognized it as Ienzo's voice. "Hello, Ienzo," she said, a smile fighting onto her face despite herself. The soft chuckle behind her didn't help.

"...Enjoy your surprise," he continued, his voice further away.

At this, she couldn't help but feel a ping of excitement. So even he knew what it was. "When can I see?" she asked aloud.

"Soon."

A different familiar voice chuckling alerted her to another person they must have passed by. "Well, I guess it can't be that bad, then," the voice said.

"As if. It's not 'bad' at all," Braig responded, sounding humorously affronted.

"Hi, Nora," Kairi giggled, greeting her second guardian.

"Kairi. Whatever is going on, this time?"

She laughed. "I have no idea." She pointed to the hand over her eyes. "He's being mean."

"Oh, really? Come _on_..."

Nora hummed. "Should I spoil it?"

Braig made a sound. "Don't, c'mon! I'm trying to cheer her up."

"Braig!"

Another hum. "...Well, I don't know the significance, but I imagine it will."

"Oh, shoo, medic."

The woman laughed, retorting with, "Sniper." Her laughter then drifted as they continued on.

After another short while, a door opened, and all distant noises disappeared as she was ushered into a room. "Now?" Kairi asked pleadingly.

Something shifted. "Hold on...Okay." The hand was removed.

She blinked, and took in the first thing that focused in her vision, only for a gasp to escape her.

Behind her, Braig smiled a bit as she slowly approached the bed within the room, upon which the sleeping body of a familiar silver-haired teen boy rested. He watched as she tentatively reached out to touch the boy's arm, only to pull her hand back.

"...He's...really here," she breathed, her eyes becoming glassy with tears. "...Riku." She sat on the edge of the bed beside her friend, and then looked back at her guardian. Her expression asked all the questions she didn't know how to word.

He shrugged. "No idea how he got here. The patrol found him, actually, and he was unconscious even then. This was a while ago. They were gonna hold him in the dungeon until Lord Ansem saw him, and then he alerted everyone who knows," he explained, leaning back on the doorframe. He crossed his arms. "...Wasn't easy to convince the others to bring him here."

Kairi understood why. Darkness still clung to her friend, even in this new existence. But she wasn't worried, more than sure Riku could overcome it, just as he did then. What concerned her was that he had been sleeping all this time. Was he hurt, inside? Pursing her lips, she tentatively reached and placed her hand on his chest, over his heart, and closed her eyes.

...Something wasn't right. Her brows furrowed as she tried to decipher the anomaly within her friend's heart. It was...it was...

"...Sora..." she murmured. Her tears fell from her eyes. "...I sense...Sora."

Blinking, Braig rose an eyebrow. Sora? Inside of Riku...? Why did that sound...somehow familiar, yet...not?

Opening her eyes, Kairi moved her hand away and stared at the peaceful expression on her friend's face as he slept. _What happened, Riku...?_

Moments after she thought this, Riku stirred and slightly grimaced. He then groaned softly, muttering, "Kairi...?"

"Riku?" Kairi leaned forward, her expression hopeful. "Can you hear me?"

He groaned again, but managed a nod. "...Ye...yeah..." He smiled. "...You're really here..."

He took the words right out of her mouth. Smiling back, she wiped her tears from her eyes, laughing softly. "I should be saying that..." she whispered. "You're in Radiant Garden."

His brow slightly creased, his eyelids fluttering, but remained closed. "...So far..." he murmured.

"...Can you open your eyes?" she asked.

He softly exhaled, but his eyes fluttered again. "...They feel...so heavy."

She frowned, and then placed a hand over his eyes. "...Try now."

He was silent for a moment, and then he smiled again. "...It's incredible...I can sense you so clearly, Kairi. You're so bright...so warm," he said softly.

She smiled at his words, briefly wondering if anyone else could sense her that way.

"...It's dark," he said suddenly, cracking a humored smile.

She moved her hand away, and only slightly startled when the eyes that looked up at her were turquoise, but with vertical, slanted pupils. It was Riku. There was nothing to fret over...

Instead, she smiled at him, and the returned smile was definitely his. He slowly sat up, placing a hand over his chest with a grimace. "...I feel heavy," he groaned.

Worry overcame her features, but she didn't say anything, yet. She waited until he was sitting up completely before rushing in for a firm but gentle hug that would have sent him back onto the bed if not for a hand he had holding him up. While at first startled, he then chuckled with a smile, returning the embrace with his free hand.

"I was so worried," she whispered. "Everything's so...so different, now. We were worried you might not...even _be_ , anymore."

His smile faltered, but instead of responding, his grasp on her tightened by a bit. He was worried about that, at first, as well. He then recalled what she said. "...Wait, 'we'?" he asked, glancing at her.

"Um..." She pulled back and glanced at the doorway. Braig was no longer in the room, but she still sensed him. The barest bit of him was visible from the left side of the doorway within the hall. She looked back at Riku. "...I don't know if you know this, but...five of the original six members of Organization XIII are from Radiant Garden," she began.

His expression darkened, only for his eyes to widen as he remembered... "...Sora..." he muttered, looking away. He placed his hand on his chest, over his heart, and then focused back on her. "...The Organization? Are they...?"

She shook her head. "No, these members are okay. They're not enemies, anymore. I reacted pretty badly, too, when I remembered them..." she admitted. She barely heard the deriding scoff her guardian made behind her. She made a face. Yes, that was an understatement, goodness gracious.

Riku seemed to have heard it, too. His expression changed. "...Where are we, anyway?" he asked, looking around the room.

"Hollow Bastion, the castle." She gave a reassuring nod. "You're safe, here."

His eyes slightly widened, no doubt from previous negative memories of the location. He nodded, glancing away. "How did I get here..." It wasn't a question.

That's what she wanted—no, _needed_ to know, too. That, and exactly what Sora's heart was doing within him. And...maybe why his eyes looked the way they did. So many questions, she didn't know where to start.

He sensed her curiosity and glanced back at her. "...The last thing I remember...I was on the Islands, and..." He grasped his head, grimacing. "...I don't...remember or know why, but...Sora. Something happened to Sora...and...my twin forced his heart inside of me."

She gasped, leaning forward. "Twin? You have a twin?"

He nodded, lowering his hand, and muttered, "Well...you wouldn't know him...He wasn't originally my twin. Well, in this...world?...he has always been, but not... _before_." He looked confused and shook his head.

"The previous existence, you mean?" she asked.

"...I guess...that sums it up. Maybe. The world before? No..." He sighed and placed his hand over his heart again. "...Yeah. Sora's heart is inside of me. I don't know how it happened or how it worked or how it's even possible. I don't even... _notice_ , really. But if I reach in, Dive within my heart...I do."

Her eyes focused on his chest as the implications of what this all meant weighed on her. "...Is Sora...out there...as a Nobody, then...?" she asked softly, rhetorically. She wasn't expecting an answer.

Riku had none, himself. There was a brief silence before he smiled at her. "...I'm glad you're okay, Kairi."

Her responding smile held a touch of concern. "...Are _you_ okay, Riku?" she asked, reaching up to touch her own eye. "Your eyes are...different."

His pupils pulsed, becoming round before returning to slants, as if trying and failing to prove otherwise. He touched the rim of an eye. "...Different?" At her nod, he looked away, lowering his hand. "All these things are pointing to something I don't want to acknowledge..." he muttered to himself, his expression darkening.

"Riku...?"

He shook his head. "Don't worry. I'm not...possessed or anything. I think...this is natural, for me, my eyes being like this," he said. "...We have a lot to catch up on."

"Yeah..." She glanced back at the door.

He followed her gaze. "...Which brings me to...Why is there a very Dark presence nearby? I know you can sense it," he said, his words curious, if not with a touch of unease.

She looked back at him, managing a dry smile. "You can sense that, of course," she sighed in resignation, and then moved to stand up. "Riku, promise me you won't freak out, okay?" she said, placing her hands on her hips.

A bit of a person was visible from within the hall. Riku eyed them, growing suspicious.

"Riku!"

He focused on her. "...I promise not to freak out," he affirmed.

She sighed.

"...too much," he added.

She hummed, eyes slanting. "Good enough."

"Don't worry," Braig said, coming into view, "by now, I'm used to anything."

Already slanted pupils contracted further. "YOU!" Riku exclaimed, on his feet in a moment. He came beside Kairi, who held out an arm to stop him.

Hands on his sides, Braig said, "Yes, me. Not a bad reaction, kiddo."

Narrowing his eyes, Riku immediately spat, "I don't care if you're not an enemy, I don't trust _you_."

Kairi frowned, whereas Braig merely grinned. "Gee, what a _surprise_ ," he retorted, giving his head a shake. "Fortunately for me...I don't care."

"Guys!" Kairi looked between them. "Stop it! Riku, I told you five members of Organization XIII are here!"

"But _him_? He was second-in-command, Kairi!"

"Nah, that was Saïx, actually," Braig said between his teeth.

Riku glared at him. "Whatever. You held the second rank. That's a good enough reason not to trust you, even now."

"I said, _stop it!_ " Kairi glared openly at them. " _I_ trust both of you. With my _life_ ," she emphasized, causing Riku to look at her in surprise and shock.

He pointed at the man. "Wha—?"

"In _this_ existence, he's one of my guardians. My guardian Knight, in fact, and I've trusted him my whole life," she explained, folding her arms. "There's nothing to worry about. None of us, in fact, are exactly who we were in the previous existence, anymore."

"Exactly my point," Riku pressed, waving a hand, "he reeks of Darkness. It's so potent, I've never felt anything like it within a whole being."

The sudden dark, peeved expression she turned on him caused him to break into a sweat. "There is...NOTHING to worry about," she repeated warningly. To both of them, she said, "Get along. That's an order." With a sound of displeasure, she walked past Braig and left the room, her angry footsteps echoing down the quiet hall.

Left alone, surprised brown eyes looked into turquoise. "...Well, you heard the Princess..." he said with a shrug, cracking a small smile. He then muttered, "First time she's ever done that...I think you pissed her off."

Riku glared at him. "Don't flatter yourself," he hissed, following after her.

The former Number II shook his head with a patient, wry smile. "Fun times," he chuckled aloud before turning to leave, closing the door behind him.


	8. LOADING--- Fabula

There was a pep in Kairi's step as she walked through the castle grounds. A small but bright smile adorned her face, and her change in demeanor was noticeable to all and anyone who knew her...which meant everyone in Radiant Garden noticed, of course. Everyone from the merchant selling wares in the marketplace to the general of the Nth Regiment gave her a smile or greeting when they saw her, and she was in such a pleasant mood, she didn't even notice their knowing looks.

Her friend Riku's appearance in Radiant Garden had everything to do with it. Since only a handful of people would know and understand this, however, it made way for gossip to spread through the castle city. They were misinterpreting her happiness for...something _else_.

Not that she was aware of this, either.

She was searching for another friend, at the moment, a friend who was one of her closest in the new existence. For the past several months, they had been away, and she only recently received word that they had returned. Her friend's parents, however, told her she was with her boyfriend, somewhere. That was fine for Kairi, and she went on her merry way in search for her.

Approaching the training grounds, she saw Braig and Riku sparring, which wasn't a bad idea. Riku wielded a sword, whereas Braig effortlessly brandished a rapier, dodging and weaving through Riku's attacks with a grace and skill that was unusual for him. She shook her head. _Boys will be boys_ , she thought, seeing the determination and attempt to hide his own enjoyment on Riku's face.

Her gaze went up a bit, and she spotted soft pink hair near a balcony overlooking the training grounds. She smiled to herself. That had to be her friend. She turned around to leave, only to realize she wasn't alone.

"Oh, hi, Nora," she greeted, smiling at her guardian.

"Good afternoon, Kairi," the woman greeted with a cordial nod. Wearing casual clothes, she looked out at the training grounds. "Your friend is skilled with a sword, hm?"

She beamed, looking back at him. He held his own rather well against the Knight, but it was just a spar. Anyone who knew the Knight could see Braig was holding back. "Yeah, he's _really_ good," she laughed, watching him fondly. It brought back faint memories of peaceful, carefree days on the Destiny Islands...

Nora noticed her change in demeanor. She took a moment to think about what she was going to say, and then took a chance. "...May I ask how...you know him?" she asked, her voice merely inquisitive.

Glancing to the ground, Kairi considered explaining the truth to her second guardian. It was too convoluted, too difficult to explain, even in Kairi's mind and understanding. She truly wanted to, however. She trusted her guardians without question. Shaking her head, she sighed, "I...don't know how to explain. It's a long story, but it doesn't make sense, even to me." She fiddled with her fingers.

Humming, Nora shifted in place. "...You'd be surprised to know what has been going on, in the past several months or so," she said, looking up upon noticing the two individuals over the balcony. The girl with pink hair beckoned to her, and then motioned to Kairi to bring her up. "...Let's take a walk," she said suddenly, patting Kairi's shoulder before walking away from the training grounds.

Kairi watched after her for a moment before following, only taking a brief glance back at her guardian Knight and best friend from another existence.

-:ReVeKi:-

Kairi approached her friend as they neared her, calling, "Serah!"

The older girl turned from an embrace with a young blond man who positively towered over her, managing a small smile. "Hey, Kairi," she said, barely audible even as Kairi approached.

Kairi did take notice, and her demeanor changed to one of concern. She slowed in her steps, head tilting slightly to the side. "...What's wrong?" she asked, and then looked up at the young man. "Is...everything alright, Snow?"

He nodded, but it was half-hearted. "...Sort of," he admitted, looking down at Serah.

Serah waited until Kairi was near enough to give her a hug. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you where I was going, before," she apologized, and the embrace was easily returned. She closed her eyes. "...I want to tell you something important," she said, slightly pulling away to look her friend in the eye.

Brows furrowed, understanding something serious was happening, Kairi nodded. "Of course." She held on to her friend's sides.

Hands on Kairi's shoulders, Serah briefly glanced away. "...Kairi...what if I told you...that many of us here, including myself, remember events and worlds from another timeline?" she asked, not meeting her friend's gaze.

Gasping, Kairi took Serah's hands into her own. "You, too?" she exclaimed in surprise, causing her friend to look up at her.

She blinked. "You...as well?"

"Well..." Kairi's brow furrowed and she glanced away. "I guess it's not the same...timeline...or existence as yours, since there are many from here who also remember the one I'm talking about. The one _I_ remember," she explained.

Behind Serah, Snow ran his fingers through his hair as he shook his head in disbelief. "That's crazy," he muttered, waving his other hand. "How is that even...even a thing?"

"It's definitely more outlandish than what we dealt with on Cocoon," Nora added, approaching to stand nearer to the three. "I...personally don't believe the fal'Cie have anything to do with this..."

At Kairi's confusion, Serah explained, "In the existence we lived in, there were godly beings called the fal'Cie. They controlled every aspect of our lives, and their words were absolute." She grasped Kairi's hands a bit more, her gaze lowering. "...It all began...when I became a l'Cie, someone branded by a mark given by fal'Cie, only I was a Pulse l'Cie, which was against the Cocoon fal'Cie that we were ruled by..."

Listening intently, Kairi followed to the best of her ability.

Slowly, Serah's gaze rose, though her gaze was distant as she looked away. "I had...an older sister...named Claire. She tried to save me, but along with several others, including Snow, she became branded by the Pulse fal'Cie, as well. They became wanted outlaws in the blink of an eye, all because of me..."

Snow made a face, but it wasn't harsh, one of sympathy, and he placed a hand on Serah's shoulder.

This seemed to snap her out of her daze. Lowering their hands, she said to Kairi, "That's why we left. We were looking for my sister. Everyone else, Kairi, _everyone_ else is here. Sazh, Dajh, Gadot, Hope—even Sirs Raines and Nabaat, despite being enemies, then. Two good friends named Fang and Vanille live far from here, but they're still _here_." She closed her eyes. "...Everyone but my sister."

With all her heart, Kairi understood. A feeling flushed within her, a mix of fear, worry and even anger. Why was this happening to them? Why was it happening at all...? To anyone? She gave her friend a hug. "...I understand. Really, I do," she said, slightly moving away to look Serah in the eye. The same emotions she felt flickered within the dark blue orbs, and she pursed her lips. She then looked down at the training grounds. "...That boy who arrived here, Riku? He's not from this world."

This caught Snow, Nora and Serah's attention, and they all looked down to watch the silveret as he sparred with one of the best warriors on their star.

"You mean...he's from _off-world_ , not just another existence?" Snow asked, placing his hands atop the balcony railing.

Kairi nodded, turning to watch as well. "Yeah...He came here, out of nowhere. He doesn't even remember how," she said, and then to Serah, encouraged, "but that could mean...maybe your sister is on another world, somehow."

Serah's eyes widened with encouragement for the first time in several weeks. She smiled, nodding in agreement. "Yeah. Maybe so. Hopefully..." she murmured, glancing down at her hands.

Nora came to her side, placing a comforting hand on her back of her shoulder. "There is always hope," she reminded, causing both Serah and Snow to smile.

Snow turned, just in time to return the embrace given to him by his girlfriend. He met her blue gaze with an amorous smile, and then looked to the stars. "...Hope, eh...?" he said softly.

His gaze was followed by his companion's. Though the stars weren't visible, something twinkled at them from far away, despite the light in the heavens.

A young teen with silver hair and green eyes looked over towards them from his place atop a fence near the training grounds. As if he heard them, a smile came to his face. "...There is always hope," he whispered. He then looked to the sky as well. "Isn't that right...Lightning?"

* * *

 **A/N:** L

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What an awesome chapter. I had so much enthusiasm while typing this! I'm not at all _particularly_ fond on Final Fantasy XIII, but being able to add elements of it with Kingdom Hearts elements just...AUGH, why can't Square Enix and Disney do their own series right, damnit?!

...I admit it. I am leading up to something _huge_ with the way everyone keeps treating poor ol' Braig. But is it betrayal? Is it his possible death? Is he double-crossing someone? Is it his heart of Darkness? Is something influencing him? Is he truly loyal to Ansem and Kairi? I cannot say, nor will I hint at it. That is for you all to try to figure out~

From here on, I _will_ add more FFXIII characters into the narrative. Somehow. And I say that only because so many of these demos aren't _planned_ , you know...? I, personally, want to see more of Nora, in particular, since she's Kairi's second guardian, and of course, Serah and Snow (MY FFXIII OTP, FTW!) because Serah is Kairi's friend. Also, did I mention how much I love Serah and Snow together?

Also. I did a _serious_ number on Snow. You'll see, eventually...huihuihui...

Until next time~! Please don't forget to leave a comment! This is an experiment, so critique is much desired!


	9. Dive into Fate (As He Faded Away)

The expansive darkness of the void couldn't reach the light emanating from below him. He smiled at its familiarity, knowing exactly where he was, and looked down to meet the stained-glass portrait of his Station of Awakening. Unfortunately, that was when his expression slowly dropped at the jarring unfamiliarity of its new design.

Most noticeably, he wasn't on the stained glass at all, though the image of the Destiny Islands was still below the six circles. At the edge of the platform, the 20 circles still held crowns within them. This was the norm.

...However.

Gone were the profiles of his friends, replaced with the images of three other people, all with closed eyes, and a single image. There was a girl resembling Kairi with black hair, exactly where Kairi's profile used to be, and a familiar boy with blond, spiky locks where Riku's profile once was. Above the girl's image was another boy...who looked exactly like the other blond one, yet looking upon him invoked the impression something was...different, somehow. Their faces also wore different expressions, the first with furrowed brows and the other appearing far more somber.

The last image, above the first boy's profile, was of a paopu fruit.

...Who were these people...?

 _SO MUCH TO DO...SO LITTLE TIME..._

He tensed, flinching from sudden pain at the voice that spoke. A foreign presence gripped at his being, causing darkness to creep onto the platform.

"Who...who are you?" he asked, looking around. This wasn't like before.

 _YOU DESERVE NO EXPLANATION. YOU WILL BE TESTED, FOR THE LAST TIME._

He grasped his chest as a sudden flare erupted within, and he gasped while lowering to his knees. Around him, the darkness crept closer. What was happening within his heart...?

 _"You will not fade."_

...This new voice was familiar.

 _"...you will_ not _fade..."_

...Another voice? Or was it the same one...? Like the other—if it _was_ another—it was somehow familiar.

 _"YOU WILL NOT FADE AWAY."_

Yet another voice! This was the strongest one, and it gave him a surge of power that allowed him to push onto his feet. When he looked up, standing before him were two hooded figures roughly matching his own size and shape, with minor differences. Their uniforms were Black Coats...

Yet he felt no hostility from them. To his surprise, he sensed a sort of camaraderie from them, instead. They glanced back at him, their faces obscured with the darkness within their hoods, and the three nodded at one another.

 _DISSENTER._

Pulling from the void onto the platform came even more darkness, and it slowly took form. It was vaguely humanoid, with what resembled a wispy head at its top, and definite long, clawed arms. Its lower half, however, was phantom-like, wisps of darkness streaming from the void around them. Its size was massive, easily just passing a Darkside's, and that was without a technical lower half.

He took a step back in fear as he watched the monstrous form take shape before his eyes, but then caught the other two still looking at him. Maybe he only thought so, but for a second, he saw the faces within the hood. They were kind...yet sad; one familiar, the other a mirror of a face sought after.

Brows furrowing, he nodded at them once again.

Wordlessly, they each summoned at least one Keyblade as they faced their adversary. The booming, mocking laughter that echoed about the Station did little to shake their spirits, unnatural as it was.

 _THIS TIME, YOUR KIND WILL BE ENJOYED BEFORE FADING TO NOTHINGNESS._

* * *

The waves gently crashed upon the wet sand of the beachside, and the sea glass shone daintily in the sun. The cool breeze brushed through his hair, whisking it about his face, and for the first time since he was very young, he looked upon the great expanse of ocean with a sense of true belonging. Not since that day so many years ago had he recalled such a feeling, the day he arrived on the beachside with the blue gaze of a young brunet boy looking worriedly upon his sickly body...

Sitting upon the sand and against the ledge, the same brunet's limp body rested beside him. Upon his lowered face, the younger teen wore a serene expression, and his friend could only hope, only pray, that he was indeed in a peaceful, calm slumber. If not for the severity of the problems made by their situation, perhaps...this wouldn't be so bad. Not as bad...

Riku softly, derisively scoffed at himself. What was he thinking...There could be nothing "good" about their situation.

"What will you do, Riku?"

His gaze lowered to the sand. At his far-right side behind him, the dark figure of his former replica stood in the shade of the entrance to the cave.

He didn't immediately respond, his expression falling as his thoughts returned to darker paths. "...I...don't know. I've been thinking about it...and I don't know," he hesitantly responded, glancing to Sora's body.

Sekai's eyes glowed in the darkness, focusing on him. "...What do you mean?" he asked, unable to keep the slight irritation out of his voice. "What must you do next? It is simple, no?"

Riku shook his head, heaving a deep, patient sigh, before answering, "...No. It isn't simple. What _should_ I do next? Where do I take Sora? How do I explain this to our folks back home? Should I take him home?" His gaze returned to the ocean. It calmed him. "...Those are my immediate thoughts. No answers, and nothing is simple about the questions."

The pale twin frowned. "...I wouldn't keep Sora out of your sight. Unfamiliar scents have lingered in the air since I arrived here...scents tainted heavily with Darkness. You noticed?" he asked, slowly leaving the safety of the shade to come to Riku's side.

"Yeah. I noticed. That's another reason why I'm uncertain what to do next..."

Sekai stepped onto the sand, letting his bare feet dig back into the warmth. He then sat upon the ledge a respectful distance from his twin, covering the rest of his body entirely with his cloak. "...Venture off-world, then," he said, as if it solved everything.

Another patient sigh. "I don't know where to go, Sekai."

"Yet I do."

At this, Riku glanced back to look at him, and blinked with a small, slightly amused smile upon seeing the huddled bundle of black, save for bare, pale feet in the sand. While he didn't doubt that his former replica knew places to go... "...Would it be safe for you to tell me?" he asked, not bothering to bat around the bush.

"No." A glowing, alien eye peeked from under the hood. "So, I won't tell you. I shall _inform_ you of a familiar, radiant world called the Brightest Star, a place where none of the forces of Darkness have ever fully breached."

Again, Riku blinked, this time with surprise. A _radiant_ world...Radiant Garden...? He opened his mouth to speak when several Corridors of Darkness appeared before him, as well as several figures that teleported with the powers of Darkness

From out of the Corridors came more figures, all wearing Black Coats, creating a total of nine. Somehow, Riku knew none of them was the one that attacked him and Sora, either. He jumped to his feet, holding a hand out protectively as he stood in front of his unconscious friend. Likewise, Sekai stood and inched closer to Riku.

The tallest and broadest of the figures looked towards the former replica. "...Ah...you, again. How long has it been, now...? Ten years?" they asked, their voice heavily masculine and sagely.

A low, inhuman growl was Sekai's response, and he lowered a clawed hand from out of his cloak.

"Who are you?" Riku demanded, though he had more than an idea as to who they were.

"What do you think?" another figure drawled with a shrug. "There are only nine of us...for now."

Riku scowled. "Organization XIII."

"Hand over the boy," said another in a low, monotone voice, this one much different from the others. They were very short, maybe no taller than three feet, and at first glance, Riku was reminded of an old friend that same size. But instead of large, round ears that gave his friend's identity away, their hood was normal, like the others.

Furthermore, instead of standing, they hovered over the ground by at least four feet.

He was wary of this one. "What do you want with him?" he asked, inching closer to Sora.

"That's our business," the second figure said. "And we're more than willing to fight you for him."

"Think now, boy. You're defenseless," the first figure continued, "and we wouldn't want to damage you. You have a role in the future, one we wouldn't dare to interfere with."

"Forget it," Riku spat, waving a hand. He wished he could summon a Keyblade, though he _knew_ he could... "You all reek of Darkness."

Another figure, this one slighter than the others, heavily sighed, "Here we go again with the Darkness thing..."

"We're wasting time," the smallest figure hissed. "Do you all _want_ my brother to find us again?"

Several of the figures muttered to themselves before the first one lowered a hand. In that hand, a large, majestic shield with a keyhole in its center appeared out of wisps of Darkness.

"Hey!"

Riku focused on several of the figures as they stepped forward in what seemed to be shock. The one in front of him even recoiled, lowering the shield. They were looking...behind him.

He turned back, only to see Sekai hovering over Sora's body, his hand within the younger teen's chest. He gasped in horror and reached out. "Sora!"

It happened so fast, he wouldn't remember it. Sekai pulled a heart from out of Sora's chest, and what focused on Riku were not glowing green eyes, but yellow. His free hand then grabbed Riku's, pulling him forward while thrusting the heart into his twin's chest.

Darkness crept at the edges of his vision. Riku fell back, the sounds of shock and cries of anger ringing in his ears. Slowly, his eyes gazed towards the body of his friend, whose body faded away into specks of light.

A voice, so clear and near, rang in his mind.

 _"You'll thank me later, brother."_


	10. LOADING--- Not a Parent

Three children sat in a circle, two boys and a girl. The older boy had steel blue hair that covered the right of his sapphire eyes and was about twelve years old, whereas the other had silver-grey hair and deep green eyes, approximately five years old. The girl was maybe six or five with strawberry red hair and large blue eyes that were slanted as she looked at the boys.

" _My_ dad is obviously cooler than yours," she said in conversation. "He's one of the bestest, best Knights of the Nth Regiment!"

The younger boy frowned, crossing his arms childishly. "No, _my_ dad's cooler than yours, 'cause he's…he's a scientist and the Co-Director of the Academy Division!"

"Aca _demics_ Division," the older boy corrected, and then he made a triumphant grin. " _MY_ dad is literally cooler than both of yours…'cause his element is ice!" he cheered.

The other two children frowned. "That's not fair!" the girl cried, pointing at him. "It doesn't count if it's his element!"

"Does too!"

"Does not!"

"Seconded!" chimed the younger boy, a fist in the air. "Doesn't count!"

"Does _too!_ "

"Does _not!_ "

Watching them, further away and sitting on couches around a coffee table, Even and Bartholomew glanced at one another with amused smiles. On the table before them were steaming cups of coffee. Bartholomew took his up and sipped softly from it before glancing over at the dark figure partially hidden in the doorway at his left.

Also taking notice of him, Even leaned back, highly amused. "Might as well get used to it, Braig. She's been calling you her father in secret for four years, now," he hummed.

Brown eyes rolled with a groan. "I mean, fine, call Nora 'mother'—cause we all know that's flattering to _her_ —but seriously?" he grumbled, unfolding an arm to wave it. "I'm not cut out for that sort of thing."

"I'd say quite the opposite, you've been doing a great job," Bartholomew said between a sip with more than a hint of amusement that caused his counterpart across from him to chuckle.

Braig glared at them both. "As _if_. I'm just doing my job."

"Exactly why you're doing so well."

"Hey, Bart? Shut up."

Both scientists softly laughed to themselves, causing the dark-haired man to silently grumble even more.

Even sighed, looking up at his fellow Knight. "Honestly, Braig, is it really so bad? She's a child, an orphan, and she's simply imprinting associations onto the two closest people she has to a mother and father," he explained, his voice no longer amused, but the studious trill so common to him when explaining facts. "Quite frankly, you should be flattered, if nothing else…but irritated? Huh. I didn't know you could be so cruel."

A dark glare was thrown the older man's way, but Braig didn't say anything in his own defense. Instead, he glanced over to the children, who remained oblivious to his presence for the moment. No doubt Kairi noticed he was near, but perhaps unaware just how close. He sighed to himself, his expression easing. He watched them as they finally came to a decision that, fine, Even was "literally" the coolest dad. So then, who was the hottest?

He barely held in a laugh when both Even and Bartholomew practically spit out their drinks upon overhearing that, and then coughed to prevent himself from actually laughing. Kids said the darnedest things.

Was it flattering that Kairi, his ward, saw him as her father…? No. Not in the slightest. Honestly, it made him feel strange, and not in a good, bubbly-fluttery sort of way. It made him think of his own father, and he would rather not think of his parents.

His gaze darkened again and he looked away, back down the hall that led to the main areas of the Academics Division. He stared at the glass he could see from his view that overlooked the labs in thought.

Yes. He _did_ understand why Kairi thought the way she did...but that didn't mean he had to like it.

* * *

 **A/N:** L

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Good to see Riku get some attention, sheesh. I mean, it's funny; he's supposed to be the _main character_ , for crying out loud. Of my Kingdom Hearts retelling, I mean. Doesn't seem like it, now, does it? Seems like Kairi or even Braig is the main character...Eventually, I'll fix that...

Don't bother trying to figure out who the Organization members are. Except one, maybe...~ As for the figures and voices within Sora's Dive...those should be obvious...

...Okay. Things are just...going _nuts_ , now. Things are getting darker, less like standalone oneshots and more like legitimate previews to what can happen in my fanfic's canon (but not all, I swear). I already have the eleventh demo done, guys, and it's...*whistles* I mean, dang, it is mind-blowingly _incredible_! It's got new characters (Disney ones) appearing out of the blue, familiar characters finally making appearances, another OC...! I just can't believe I got it out in two sittings! It's like thirteen pages, too! I just may have to...SPLIT IT INTO TWO CHAPTERS.

...Or not.

...Whereas this chapter is an unusual, short little thing I had lying around. Wanted to use it, somehow, so...here it is. Okay. Back to awesomeness.

I don't think I mentioned it before, but these are non-linear oneshots within the same universe. That's why it seems as if they are all over the place as far as a timeline goes. They're not meant to be connected, though some of them _could_ be.

Don't forget to leave a comment! This is experimental, so critique is greatly desired!


	11. Symphony Fantasia

"Kairi? Kairi!"

She slightly stirred, but otherwise didn't move.

"Crap, is she gonna be okay?"

She recognized these voices.

"Ah, she's fine. Just give her a sec."

Grimacing, she slightly groaned while coming to.

"See? She's fine."

...Isa?

"She's not conscious, yet! How is she 'fine'?!"

...Surprisingly, that was Ienzo.

"Aw, she's a strong one; she's okay, man."

And that was definitely Braig.

Again, she groaned, her eyes fluttering open. "...Stop...fussing over me!" she said, her voice rising in pitch as she came to full consciousness. "I'm awake!"

Her gaze greeted five sets of different colored eyes that were looking down at her from the faces of five different men. Bright cobalt blue orbs were the first to widen with relief.

"Kairi!" Ienzo breathed, taking her hand to help her sit up. "Are you alright?"

She smiled at his concern, recalling he was normally one of those who didn't fret over her too much. She briefly placed a hand on her forehead, nodding at her companions. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just a little disoriented," she said, looking up at them.

Seeing she was okay, the others were backing off, though of all of them, Isa and Braig were the only two who were already standing. Asul, Ienzo and Lea had been kneeling or crouched near her and relief was plain upon their features. Ienzo pulled her up to stand, and she then took a good look around them.

They landed from the Starflake upon...well, what was clearly a giant, pinkish cloud. All around them was sky, several more pink-hued clouds, rainbows, and some nearby mountains, whereas below, an ocean was visible. She gasped and crouched a bit, uneasy from being up so high.

"Are we going to be okay?" she asked warily, glancing back at Braig as he came towards her.

He hummed, giving a nonchalant shrug. "I think we're gonna be fine. This place looks distantly familiar..." he said, eyeing the lower clouds.

After they landed, he noticed several flying bodies that hid underneath the clouds or disappeared into the sky. He also noticed the clouds were all linked by rainbows, and he approached a large one connected to the cloud they stood on to tentatively place a foot atop it. It was surprisingly solid, impossibly solid, even after he put his entire weight on it.

He looked back at his group. "We can take the rainbow bridges down or jump and hope we land on the ground."

Kairi and Ienzo grimaced. "I'll take the bridge," Kairi said grumpily, marching forward to do just that. Ienzo shortly followed after her.

As the younger two of the group moved forward, Braig looked to the others. "This is a rather safe world, or at least, it should be," he said to them before following Kairi and Ienzo.

Isa looked skeptic. "You know it?" he asked as they walked.

"Yeah. Means nothin' though, it's been a hella long time. Ten years or so..." he muttered, trailing off. A brown eye glanced back at them. "Keep your guard up," he ordered.

"Roger," Isa and Lea said in unison, whereas Asul merely nodded.

-:ReVeKi:-

The rainbow bridges connecting the clouds had several pathways leading in many directions. Eventually, Braig led the way to lead them down towards the base of a mountain with a noticeable split at its foundation. There was a giant forest as well, with visible mushroom caps, other fungi and the colors of flowers scattered here and there. It seemed entirely fairytale-like, and with the oncoming nightfall, it was even more so as dim lights began to glow from below.

Before too long, the clouds ended, and they were left with no other choice but to jump. Braig stood at the edge of their current cloud, hands on his waist as he looked down. Below, the forest and a field of white flowers were distantly visible; they had left the oceanic area. The mountain was enormous, now that they were closer, and the split at its base was, in fact, large enough for them to see a path of forest ground and more fungi leading deeper inside. That was in front of them.

He moved to his right side upon the cloud to look down. There, a field of white flowers led to what could only be described as a forest of grass instead of trees. As it was now the evening, the fairy lights in the air gave it a magical feel and appearance. It was almost beckoning at them to enter.

Or at least, beckoning at _him_.

He glanced back. "Looks like we jump," he stated.

At Kairi's groan, Asul came to her side and pointed a clawed finger towards the forest below. "We can land on the mushroom caps," he said to her. "If their size from this distance means anything, they will be more than strong enough to carry our weight."

Braig briefly glanced back at him before looking towards the tall grass again. "...Good thinking." He seemed slightly distracted.

"Just don't land hard," Lea reminded, taking some steps back in preparation to jump.

Nodding, Kairi moved back as well, along with Asul, Ienzo and Isa.

"Don't forget to activate your Grav-Con Unit," Braig reminded as Lea took the first jump forward.

"Yeah, yeah!" the redhead shouted back, and then broke out into whooping shouts of glee as he fell.

Not one to be outdone by the firebrand, Isa smirked before running and jumping, taking a nosedive to catch up with his friend.

Ienzo smiled after them before following, his fall more graceful and controlled than the others'.

Asul was about to run when he noticed Kairi was hesitant. He waited, looking back at her, and then looked at Braig.

Though he didn't look at her, the older man smiled. "You've got this, Kairi," her guardian said to her.

She nodded, looking forward, and then looked up at her partner. "You know how to activate it, right?" she asked him. At his nod, she looked forward along with him.

Together, they took several steps back, then ran forward and jumped. She snapped her fingers, causing an energy field to cascade over her body, as it did for Asul after he followed suit.

"Rendezvous at the grass forest!" Braig shouted after them, a hand held at his mouth.

"Okay~!" Kairi shouted back, smiling from the rush of air and excitement from falling.

He smiled as he watched after them, lowering his hand. A sudden animalistic snort brought his attention to a black, male Pegasus with a white mane and tail that suddenly landed behind him. He smiled at it, turning around to pet its muzzle as it lowered its head. "Hey...you remember me," he said to it. It neighed softly, nuzzling his hand. His smile widened. "Let me guess, your family went and hid, again, just like last time, the jackasses..." He eyed the forms of more Pegasi further back and above in the clouds.

While it didn't nod, there was a look of understanding in its eyes that expressed an apology, but he waved it off.

"...Man, you've grown. You were knee-high last time I saw you..." He recalled the small, scared little Pegasus that he saved a decade ago and shook his head. He then glanced at the tall grass again, adding, "Hey...can you do me a favor? I'm lookin' for someone..."

* * *

Kairi and Asul were the last to land upon the mushroom cap, their fall absorbed with the help of their AMP technology. They then stood in awe at the size of the fungi, which its cap alone was easily the size of a small room. Lea and the other two were already on the ground, observing their surroundings.

Ienzo glanced up and noticed their missing member. "Where's Braig?" he called up at them.

Pointing back to the sky, Kairi replied, "He's still up there. Told us to meet him at that tall grass!"

Isa exhaled heavily, following her finger to look to the clouds. They were too far away—and entirely normal-looking—to see the Knight. He slightly shook his head before looking away. When Braig was absent, he was to oversee the group.

Ienzo tentatively placed a hand on the mushroom stem. "I wonder if this is edible?" he pondered aloud.

"What, you hungry?" Lea asked with a grin.

"I'm merely curious, Lea."

"Hm..."

Kairi watched Asul crouch to sniff at the mushroom cap and place a hand upon it. He then gently peeled back the top layer by a bit and looked at it.

"It's safe," he said with a sure nod.

She looked down at the others. "Let's get some and add it to our inventory, then!" she said to Ienzo.

The scientist shrugged, adjusting the bag on his back. "Wouldn't hurt to have some variety," he agreed.

She cheered, and then Asul motioned her away. He raised his claws. "Step down," he said, readying himself.

After she jumped down, he jumped into the air and sliced at the cap. Before anything could happen, he sliced at it several more times faster than Kairi could follow before landing at the center of the cap again. Nothing happened for a second, and then a large perimeter of the cap broke away, cut into small pieces. Kairi, Lea and Ienzo gathered the pieces into their arms and hands as they fell. The cap upon the mushroom was smaller, but still round in shape.

"Great job, man," Lea praised, holding a thumb up.

"Guess what we're having for dinner," Ienzo chuckled with an armful of pieces.

Isa sighed, but he was smiling. " _Way_ too many—"

"Mushrooms!" Kairi cheered.

Asul placed a hand over his chest. "My pleasure," he said with a bow.

They gathered the fungi and put a reasonable amount into Ienzo's bag of provisions. The rest they scattered in the area, knowing it would be put to use by nature. They then left the mountain's base, onwards through the white flowers towards the impossibly tall grass.

-:ReVeKi:-

"What took you guys?" Braig yawned, moving from his cross-armed position against a blade of grass at the forest's entrance.

"Mushrooms," Kairi grinned, popping her last piece into her mouth.

He eyed each of them. They were _all_ snacking on mushroom pieces.

"It's pretty tasty raw," she continued.

"Will taste even better cooked," Ienzo said, nodding in appreciation. He held up a piece of the red cap. "They have a...slight saltiness to them..."

Braig only blinked, vaguely humored. "...Right." He uncrossed his arms and waved them forward. "The Starflake brought us surprisingly close to some allies. Almost like it was attracted to their location," he explained as he led them inside the grass.

"Allies?" Isa asked. "What makes them so?"

"Without a doubt, they'll help us search for both the other Princesses and our wayward Nobody friend," the sniper elaborated.

The forest was, obviously, unusual. It was just as it seemed, consisting of grass as tall as small trees, and strong like them, as well. They were difficult to bend, but they did move, only to steadily reposition themselves upright after a few minutes. It gave a slightly eerie quality to the forest, overall, and the small, dancing gold lights added an air of magic and mystery. The sounds of distant calls from animals were made intermittently, indicating it was, indeed, much like a tree forest.

Smaller, colorful fungi were spotted here and there, along with flowers and other natural forest vegetation. And though they didn't see any animals...

"...Anyone else get the feeling we're being watched?" Lea asked aloud after a few minutes of travel.

"Oh, we are," Braig easily responded, "in fact, the whole forest's alive."

Everyone else except Asul tensed.

"Incredible," he said, awed by it all. He raised a hand to let the lights dance about it. "These lights distantly remind me of Pyreflies back on Spira..."

Kairi came to his side, placing her hands behind her back. "Pyreflies?" she asked, most curious about his world.

"Yes. They are indicative of the deceased that have not passed on," he said.

As she made a sound of interest and sadness, Lea scoffed. "Because that totally helps make this place seem less eerie," he said, swatting at the lights.

Braig chuckled in amusement, glancing back at them. "C'mon kids—they're just fairy lights. Harmless little buggers; you never seen 'em before?"

No one answered, though Kairi murmured, "I wonder if real fairies exist here..."

His eyes focused forward again, Braig's face broke into a knowing smile.

They came upon an open area free of grass tress; a clearing with only flowers and small shrubbery. It was once they neared the center that the atmosphere of the forest suddenly changed, causing them all to stop.

"What is this sensation?" Isa mused, looking around cautiously and drawing his hand to his claymore upon his back.

Ienzo observed, "Feels like...moisture is gathering..." He watched as small droplets rose into the air.

Lea looked concerned. "...This...seems familiar..." he muttered, eyes narrowing.

"Crap." Braig shared a look of realization with Isa. "You don't think—"

From above, a sudden torrent of water poured upon them. It was lukewarm in temperature and heavy, strong enough that Isa, Lea and Braig collapsed to the ground from the pressure. Ienzo had erected a Barrier that he and Kairi stood under while Asul braced himself under his shield, but it meant little when the water rushed from the ground and drenched them, only to turn over and crash upon them all. Just as they hit the ground, barely getting a moment to inhale for air, geyser-like pillars of water rose from below them, throwing them all into the air before hurling them to the ground again.

With a snarl, Isa went to his feet and used his element to force the water away from him, bellowing, " ** _MYDE_** _!_ "

In a second, the literal wave of attacks ceased, causing rain to fall over their washed-out bodies before all went still and silent, save for the sounds of sputtering and coughing.

Not too far away, a young man with dirty-blond hair styled in a mullet poked his head from around a particularly large blade of grass. "...I know that voice," he said in an almost horrified whisper. Panicking, he cautiously left his position of safety and neared the clearing. "...I _KNOW_ that voice...It's haunted me in my dreams...in my mind...and I've been dreading for _months_ to— OH, _MOTHERLAND!_ "

Standing before him, teeth bared in a snarl and hands in fists, was a drenched and irate former Number VII of the Organization. Worse yet, beside him stood Lea, arms crossed and none too happy with sopping red hair in his face.

" _Myde_ ," Isa growled at the hydrokinetic.

The former Number IX whimpered, but managed an uneasy wave. "Oh... _hi_...guys...?" Nervously, he laughed, glancing briefly over the other bodies steadily rising to their feet. "And...company. Heheh...Sorry...I think?" he questioned, unsure whether they were enemies or not.

He then saw and watched as Asul helped Kairi stand. "You okay?" her partner asked her.

She was breathing heavily, but nodded. "Yeah," she breathed, moving her hair out of her face.

"...Is...is that _the_ Princess Kairi?" Myde asked, taking a few steps forward, only to retract them at the low growl from Isa.

She looked up at him. "Yes...Do I _know_ you...?"

His expression fell as he shook his head. "No...No, you don't...B-but I know you!" He warily glanced at the others. And then his expression changed into a surprisingly dangerous glower. "These guys aren't...bothering you, are they?" he asked, his tone darkening and his fingers twitching at his sides.

She blinked at the sudden 360-degree change in his demeanor. "...They're not enemies, if that's what you're asking."

He immediately let out a large sigh of relief, shoulders slumping as he leaned over. "Oh, thank _heavens_ , 'cause there's no way I could take _all_ of you out..." He finally took them all in, looking past Isa and Lea to see Ienzo and Braig just beginning to stand. "...Oh. Hey, Xiggy," he said, waving at Braig with a small smile.

Braig sighed, half-heartedly waving back. "Hey, Myde. And it's Braig, by the way."

Surprisingly, Myde moved forward and past the two glaring young men without care to approach the older Knight. "Oh. I never knew your real name, so..." The two bumped fists, perfectly friendly. "Hey, Braig. And...somebody I don't know. And you guys, too," he said, smiling at the group, only to slightly wither at the deepening glares from Isa and Lea.

"You _MIND?_ " Lea snapped, motioning to his wet clothes.

The hydrokinetic shook a finger at him, tutting. "Say please."

"Please," Kairi softly laughed as Lea sputtered with indignation.

A large smile was flashed at her. "No problem, miss," Myde said, and then he held out his hands, palms-up.

The moisture that had gathered in the air and inside their clothes pulled away to form a large, floating ball of water in front of him, drying them. He then lifted a finger while lowering his other hand to let the ball rise high above before it burst into raindrops. The drops fell away from the group, watering the surrounding verdant instead. He smiled, only to bust out into coughing laughter alongside Braig and Lea's whooping calls.

Kairi covered her mouth but forced herself from laughing, whereas Asul smiled and Ienzo bit his cheek.

Eyes closed, Isa deeply exhaled with a long-suffering sigh. His hair was sticking out wildly from his head.

"Oh, _man_..." Myde said between his laughs, which he tried very hard to stop. "I...I'm sorry about that. I had...no idea..."

"Comb. _Now_."

The item was immediately procured from Myde's pocket and he handed it to the berserker without any further prompt. Grumbling, Isa picked out a few wayward blond strands before proceeding to comb down his hair, moving away from the center of attention.

"Been a while since I've seen that," Lea laughed, a wave of heat running through his hair that brought it back to its spiky brilliance.

Clearing his throat, having calmed down first, Braig turned his focus towards Myde. "Any _way_...Myde, what was that all about?" he asked while Isa punched Lea behind him.

Also sobering up, the young blond sheepishly laughed, rubbing at his neck. "Well, that was a...sort of security measure. You see, I sensed something weird and reacted. Now I see it was likely just—" he glanced sharply at Isa before looking back at Braig— "and I'm really, _really_ sorry about that."

Braig highly doubted that was the real reason..."Jittery as always," he chuckled, patting Myde on the back. "It's fine. I guess we're closer than I thought."

Myde's expression brightened. "You're here to see the King?" he asked. At the shocked expressions turned his way from all except Asul, he grinned. "Yeah, he's here. We set up a small camp further ahead. I was acting as security...which I _hate_ , by the way," he whined, slumping forward again. Shaking his head at himself, he turned to lead the way.

As they began to move again, Ienzo asked him, "Why do you need security?"

Turning around to walk backwards, he animatedly explained, "Well, since Kairi's here, I guess I can tell you. For the past several months we've been trying to counter the new Organization XIII, which I'm sure you guys know about, right?" At their nods, he continued, "Good, so, for some reason, they've been going after the other Princesses. We've stopped them twice since I've been traveling with the King."

Kairi gasped, "So there are other Princesses here?"

He smiled at her. "On this good ol' star, Fantasia, itself? Nope, but we currently have Gisella with us," he said, turning around just in time to smoothly evade a blade of grass.

"Gisella?" Kairi asked. But she figured it out before he answered. "Oh! Cinderella!"

He laughed. "Yeah, that's her famous nickname. Her real name's Gisella, or Ella for short."

"How come we can't sense her?" Asul asked, walking beside Kairi.

Myde glanced back at him. "Oh...I don't know you; what's your name?" he asked.

"Asul Guado. I am Kairi's partner," said the Guado, raising his hand to show the glistening outline of a large shield.

Blond brows rose in amazement. "Wow, Kairi! You're a Keywielder?" After she nodded sheepishly, Myde said to Asul, "Well met! Name's Myde."

"Pleasure to meet you," Asul said with a cordial nod.

"Likewise," Myde said with a cheerful smile before looking forward once more. "To answer your question...Well, you'll find out~"

As they came upon another clearing, Kairi whispered to Ienzo, "He's a real quirky guy, isn't he?"

Smiling with humor, the scientist nodded. "Even as a Nobody, he was like this, to a reasonable degree," he said with a soft chuckle.

Within this clearing were three pitched tents, not so unlike the ones Kairi's party had, only larger. The only people around were two unfamiliar Mobians who turned to face them as they neared.

"Who's—! Oh! Hey, Myde," said the taller one wielding a sword...who looked a lot like—

" _Goofy?_ " Kairi asked, blinking as she took in the apparent swordsman.

Indeed, the Mobian looked all _too_ much like the Royal Knight of the Disney Kingdom, except younger with longer hair instead of a few strands. His eyes rolled, but a resigned smile quirked at his lips. "Nah, that's my dad," he said with a sigh, sheathing his sword. "My name's Max."

Both Lea and Braig froze in place, their eyes as wide as saucers to stare with horrified awe strewn upon their faces. "GOOFY had a _KID!_ " they cried in unison.

They suddenly doubled over in pain from equal, fierce punches to the stomach; Braig from Kairi and Lea from Isa.

" _Manners!_ " Kairi hissed at them. She then turned around and swiftly apologized, "Please don't mind them!"

Though he smiled, one of Max's eyes twitched. "I'm...rather used to it, but thanks," he said, sighing yet again.

Beside him, his shorter, stouter companion placed a hand on his shoulder. "I'm proud of you, man," he said.

All the attention then focused on this young Mobian. Several eyes narrowed with suspicion before widening in shock.

"PETE HAD—" Braig suddenly lowered to his knees, clutching his stomach and his eyes tightly shut in pain. "... _Oh_... _damn_...Kairi...I give..." he whispered, coughing as a fist retracted.

Brushing off her hands, Kairi huffed before turning to face Max and his friend with her hands on her hips. "Sorry about that," she sighed, pointedly ignoring how Lea, Isa, Asul, and Ienzo stared at her with bulging eyes. "I'm Kairi. What's your name?" she asked he who was apparently Pete's son.

He and Max were smiling with appreciation and awe. "Peter Pete Jr., but you can call me PJ. We know you," he said, and then he and Max bowed to one knee, "Princess Kairi."

Self-conscious, she gently flushed and waved her hands at them. "H-hey! Please, stand! Please just call me Kairi," she said, looking away and scuffing at the ground with her shoe. She glanced at Braig, who had long recovered, and was smiling knowingly at her. She made a face at him.

Max softly laughed, rising along with PJ. "If you say so."

"I _do_ ," she sighed, smiling appreciatively at them, "I really do..."

"I see you're all enjoying yourselves."

The attention went to the tents, where, approaching them from the largest one, was King Mickey, along with Gisella in a casual dress and blue cape, a young man with brown hair dressed similarly to a spellcaster and an older Guado, the latter two neither Kairi nor her party members recognized. Myde was also with them, smiling broadly.

Upon seeing them, Braig lowered to one knee in a bow, and Asul, Isa, Lea, and Ienzo followed suit. "Your Majesty, and Princess Gisella," he said with respect.

Mickey's brows furrowed upon seeing them. "...Braig," he said, humming deeply while crossing his arms.

As this happened, Kairi ran to and hugged Gisella. "Ella! I'm so glad to see you!"

"You, too, Kairi, and in person, at last!" said the older Princess, her face radiant with a relieved smile.

This brought Myde's attention from his ex-comrades and Asul to them, tilting his head to the side. "You've...never met?" he asked, rightfully confused. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Max and PJ disappear into the forest.

Parting from the embrace, Kairi shook her head. "Our hearts did, but not physically," she explained.

"And...not in this existence at all, truthfully," Gisella added sadly. "...It's quite confusing."

Nodding, Myde sighed heavily, shaking his head at the reminder. "...Right. _That_ whole bit..." His eyes wondered back over to where the king was addressing Braig and the others, though Asul was no longer amongst them as he approached the older Guado to converse.

Mickey stood before the former Numbers II, VI, VII, and VII of Organization XIII. "Rise," he said to them. After they did, he shook his head with a deep sigh of his own. Things were simply too unknown and confusing to properly explain, or even begin to voice, so he decided to keep it simple. His expression eased to one of relief. "It's been a long while, Braig. I hope Ansem's okay," he said to the older Knight.

All at once, Kairi, Ienzo, Isa, Myde, and Lea snapped their heads towards the former Number II. " _WHAT?!_ "

Eyes slanting with a small smile, Braig ignored their reactions and responded with, "Yeah, he's still kickin'." His expression then turned serious as he frowned, informing, "Though we had to leave during a Daylight Siege, so we have no idea what Radiant Garden's like, now."

Mickey gasped, then lowered his head and placed a hand over his heart. "Old friend...I hope you fare well..." he murmured. He took a moment to briefly close his eyes, as if saying a silent prayer, before managing a small smile and looked up at everyone else. "...Well, I suppose ya have some questions..." he began.

Pointing between Braig and the King, Myde exclaimed the one thing everyone was thinking: "You two _know_ each other?!"

Ienzo, who had been thinking, raised a finger to his chin. "...I seem to recall something like this..." he declared, and beside him, Isa nodded. "An off-world meeting that happens every decade..."

"The Decennial Congress," Braig chuckled, nodding at them. He then raised a brow in approval. "You two—and Lea and Kairi—were still pretty young when it happened ten years ago, and don't even get me started on the decade before. Impressive, guys."

The young genius furnished a slightly smug smile, folding his arms and looking quite like his godfather in that moment. "Well, Even thoroughly explained it to me at least twice. That sort of thing shouldn't be forgotten," he admitted while Isa simply smiled at his younger companion.

"The De...What?" asked Kairi, entirely confused.

Lea snapped his fingers, his face brightening with recollection. " _Oh!_ Now I remember...!" He turned to her, laughing softly with slanted, mischievous eyes. "You don't _remember_ that, do you~? _Man_ , you were a _mess_ when Braig had to leave with the other Knights that were chosen to go!"

For the second time, she slightly flushed with self-consciousness, frowning as the attention went to her. "W-well, of course I was...!" she said, defending her younger self even though she didn't remember. "...I just want to know what it is."

Saving his ward further embarrassment, Braig explained, "Like Ienzo said, there's an off-world event that happens every ten years. Y'see, the ship made from Star Flakes that brought us here—they're absurdly rare, so when they're found, they're saved to use for repairing the ships used for a meeting between the World Rulers within the system. That event's called the Decennial Congress." He beckoned to Mickey. "I went ten years ago with Dilan and Yaag, amongst others, and that's how we met...Oh, and Volken, back there, too." He nodded at the older Guado, who had been standing patiently along with Asul and the other unknown young man that was near Gisella.

"Oh!" Gisella exclaimed, holding her hand to her mouth. "We never introduced you two!"

The older Guado had reddish hair unlike Asul's blue, amongst other differences. His claws were also significantly longer and he wore robe-like clothing as opposed to more fitted, armored ones. "That is perfectly alight, my lady, we understand," he said with a smile. He then bowed, a hand over his chest. "I am Volken Guado, King Mickey's partner."

The unknown man smiled widely, showing his two greatly protruding front teeth. "I'm Jaq, Giselly's guardian!" he said. "You can also call me Hugh, if you like."

"And now that we're all acquainted," Mickey quickly stepped in, his expression and tone turning grave, "we have much to discuss."

Everyone understood, and all at once, the atmosphere changed. It was then some of them realized Myde, Max and PJ had disappeared. Ienzo began, "Where did—"

"They're patrolling," Braig interrupted, arms crossed as he glanced at his younger companion. "...Doing a damn good job, too."

"I must urge that you and Kairi go inside," Jaq said to Gisella, motioning towards the largest tent. "We may have put you both in danger."

"Yes, I agree," she said, and then took Kairi's hand as she began to walk towards it. "Kairi, we'll explain everything, but for now, we must go in."

Kairi glanced back at Braig, who wasn't looking at her as Mickey began to speak with him. Despite this, he made a small but noticeable nod when she did. "...Okay," she accepted, moving along with her fellow Princess.

As the two went to and entered the tent, Asul and Jaq stayed nearby. Isa would have as well, except Braig stopped him.

"Trust Asul," he said.

Sea-green eyes narrowed, but Isa let it go, standing near and looking at them. "...I'll trust _you_ ," he said softly.

Braig slightly smiled, then focused back on the king. "We're moving, tonight?" he asked in conversation.

"Or as soon as possible," Mickey said. "The magic Donald cast on the tents can only protect the Princesses from Darkness so long as they remain inside it. I admit we slipped up, so we should leave soon."

Nodding, Braig glanced away in thought. "Like you, we left Radiance Star to protect Kairi, and then to also search for the other Princesses, though we need some help."

Mickey shut his eyes. "If only we had another Keywielder..."

"There's Kairi."

"But she doesn't know how to wield it, does she?"

"...No," Braig admitted. There was no one who could have taught her until now. "However, we did come upon Riku—"

The king's eyes widened with hope that hadn't shined within them for ten years. He immediately became animated, asking, "Riku? Where is he? There's so much he's gotta help with! What about Sora? He's gotta help, too!"

Holding his hands up, Braig explained, "That's just it, he's busy looking for Roxas again, 'cause Sora's heart is _inside of Riku_."

Large black eyes blinked in speechless shock. Mickey's excitement diminished and died as the words were digested, and he looked to the ground.

That was a very realistic reaction, and Braig almost felt bad for having to deliver the grim news. "...We're kinda on our own, as far as Keywielders go..." He took a moment to let the silence roll through, and then sighed. "...So, we're heading to Ghibli Star next?" he asked, crossing his arms.

To the Mobian's credit, he bounced back from the news rather quickly. "...Well, I'd say we should all go, but it's too dangerous to travel with two Princesses, despite our numbers," he advised, brows furrowed in thought as he looked back up. "If we were confronted by the nine Organization members that exist, now, we could surely lose a fight. Some of them have tremendous power, and our allies have only encountered them at least two at a time."

"Allies?" Isa asked, finally involving himself in the conversation.

Mickey nodded. "We have a few, but we need more. I know of at least one—a powerful one—upon Ghibli, but he's gonna need help protectin' the Princess that's there. And she is _most_ important, if you can believe that, 'cause she's the oldest in existence." His already grave expression deepened, and he briefly closed his eyes. His silence brought all attention to him and he looked upon them with a severe look in his eyes. "She's of the first generation of Princesses of Heart, born directly after the Keyblade War. And _she_ knows this."

Aware this was a different person he was talking about, Lea and Ienzo stepped closer, as they had been listening. Nearby, looking around, Volken was also aware of the conversation, but already knew of the information.

"... _She_...?" Braig asked, his mind racing with the possible contenders. It quickly dawned on him, because there could only be one. "...You... _gotta_ be kidding me," he breathed, his eyes widening in realization.

"I sincerely wish I was," Mickey lamented, shaking his head deeply. He looked down, his hands tightening into fits. "She's already corrupted her world, and furthermore, has the heart of one Princess, the Princess _of_ Enchante Star."

Horror dawned upon Isa, Lea and Ienzo's faces. Because while, yes, there could only be one "she", both in their existence and in the other, as there was _always_ just one; and the possibility that there was _still_ only one and that one was _her_ would not surprise them, despite the wretched changes to their Now...

Those very wretched changes could have unspeakable impacts to what it meant about _her_.

She, the Mistress of All Evil.

Solemnly, Mickey declared, "Maleficent has Briar Rose's heart."


End file.
